MORE South African homeowners are installing heat pumps to help reduce their electricity
consumption, considering that the technology is significantly more energy efficient than electric and gas heating systems.
However, it is important to ensure that heat pumps are installed and maintained correctly to realise the full benefits of this technology.
“Heat pumps can reduce energy consumption by up to 70%. However, if they have been installed incorrectly and their maintenance neglected, they can actually consume more energy, over-andabove the cost of having to repair important damaged parts or having to replace the unit prematurely. It for this reason that it is mandatory for licensed plumbers to issue a Certificate of Compliance for any heat pump they install,” Brendan Reynolds, Executive Director of the Institute of Plumbing South Africa (IOPSA), says.
Many of IOPSA’s members specialise in the installation and maintenance of heat pumps for homeowners. Quality heat pumps that have been installed correctly and maintained at least once a year will continue to add value over their entire 15 to 20-year design life and can even significantly exceed this life expectancy.
Many homeowners have achieved a return on their investment within three years. Moreover, heat pumps that are serviced regularly consume between 10% and 20% less energy. This is overabove the savings homeowners realise in installation costs versus other types of water-heating systems and their very low cost of ownership, requiring only minor services.
However, substandard installation practices can lead to poor overall performance of the unit and energy loss. Heat pumps that are too large for an application will short cycle and, if too small, they will work overtime to reach the desired temperature.
In both instances, more energy will be required to operate the heat pump.
“Savings on utility bills aside, heat pumps help reduce our carbon footprint. The fact that there continues to be a marked uptake of this technology in the country means that South
Africans are opting for ‘greener” lifestyles. However, it is important that they deal with specialists who are trained in the correct installation and maintenance of heat pumps to avoid buyer’s remorse,” Reynolds concludes.
