Brave the cold weather with a Cosy heat pump

Do warmth pumps work in chilly climate?

When the temperature plummets (together with our motivation to enterprise outdoors), most of us simply need to be tucked up on the couch – cup of tea in hand, telly on, and a bottomless provide of biscuits close by. Fortunately, in contrast to us, warmth pumps are completely completely happy within the chilly.

Opposite to delusion, trendy warmth pumps can nonetheless extract warmth from the air and work brilliantly in temperatures as little as -20°C. And whereas it’s uncommon for the UK to dip that low, it’s reassuring to know your new heating system gained’t get frostbite.

Don’t imagine us? We’re glad in a method. As a result of, in a second of insanity, our Social Media Supervisor determined to leap right into a freezing chamber to show it to you. And he’s actually hoping this video wasn’t a complete waste of time.

The warmth pump experiment

Meet Xander, our Social Media Supervisor turned mad scientist. His mission? To check the boundaries of our Cosy warmth pump by stepping right into a freezing chamber alongside it. He even wager his moustache on how lengthy he might final. Bundled in additional layers than an onion (and armed with questionable optimism), he’s now formally the human benchmark for cold-weather consolation. Don’t do that at dwelling children …

Just a few takeaways

❄️ Our warmth pump extracts warmth even from freezing air

❄️ Cosy persistently maintains a heat atmosphere

❄️ It offers any gasoline boiler a run for its cash in excessive situations – it’s cheaper to run too!

Heat pump expert portrait

Now for a little bit of sensible tech science

We cornered TJ, one in every of our renewable heating consultants, to choose his mind on all issues warmth pumps – from how they work and the way environment friendly they’re, to how they deal with the chilly (and what these mysterious defrost cycles really do).

How does a warmth pump work in winter?

How do air supply warmth pumps like Cosy maintain your private home heat in winter?

TJ: Warmth pumps work the identical method a fridge does. Most of us consider our fridges as one thing that makes issues chilly, which is the last word results of their work. However a fridge is definitely only a warmth pump–one which extracts the warmth from the air inside and pumps it out into our houses (that’s why the again of your fridge is heat).

Air-source warmth pumps in your dwelling do the identical factor. They extract warmth from the air outdoors and pump it inside by way of your radiators. The secret’s the refrigerant: a particular chemical that may boil even at very low temperatures. Meaning even when it feels chilly outdoors to you and me, (say -20°C) the air temperature remains to be sizzling sufficient to boil the refrigerant in your warmth pump.

That boiling motion soaks up a bunch of warmth vitality. Then by way of the magic of valves and a compressor, the refrigerant temperature soars as much as 65°C and offers up its warmth to your radiator water. Then the cycle repeats. It’s not magic, however at occasions it appears fairly shut!

What in regards to the warmth pump effectivity in chilly climate?

Does the cop of a warmth pump lower because the climate will get colder, and the warmth pump has to work more durable?

TJ: True. The reason being due to that compressor I discussed earlier. It has to work more durable to chill the refrigerant under that outside temperature after which to compress it again to a a lot increased temperature. So the COP drops. But it surely’s value nothing that the COP remains to be 2-3 occasions increased than a gasoline boiler in the identical situations. And COP can be an instantaneous measure. What issues is your SCOP–your seasonal COP–which displays your warmth pump’s superior effectivity over the entire 12 months.

🧠 Do you know …

Scandinavia is among the coldest areas in Europe, but Norway, Sweden, and Finland have a few of the highest adoption charges of air supply warmth pumps. In the event that they’re trusted in -20°C winters, you could be assured they’ll work right here within the UK.

PRO TIP: When you’re interested by sensible tech like Cosy, this is a hyperlink to extra air supply warmth pump science.

What about built-in winter options?What is the take care of the defrost cycle?

TJ: Nice query. Why does a warmth pump have to defrost? Sounds odd. Recall the half about boiling the refrigerant even when the air is chilly. As the skin air approaches 0°C, the refrigerant getting into the evaporator (that huge metal-finned radiator on the again) will likely be under the freezing level of water. That’s as a result of it wants to choose up all that warmth from the skin air that’s simply above freezing and boil off. Because the refrigerant is under 0°C, so is the floor of the evaporator. Meaning little water droplets will begin to freeze on the floor. Happily, warmth pumps remedy this downside simply by often stopping the heating cycle for about 5 minutes and working in reverse, utilizing sizzling refrigerant to soften the ice on the evaporator (it makes a satisfying hiss and steams a bit). Then it’s again to heating the house, or making sizzling water.

How do you retain the water within the warmth pump from freezing if it’s not working?

TJ: Our Cosy has built-in frost safety. When the skin temperature falls under 7°C, our warmth pump will periodically run its circulating pump to cycle a little bit of hotter water from the house by way of the inner pipework. This solely occurs in case your warmth pump is in standby or off. In case your warmth pump is producing warmth in your dwelling, this safety characteristic doesn’t come into play. Nevertheless, if it’s chilly sufficient to threat your warmth pump freezing it’s best to positively have your heating set to a secure temperature (we suggest 15°C minimal) to make sure nothing in your house freezes or is in any other case broken.

🧠 Do you know …

Even in colder months, air supply warmth pumps stay extra environment friendly than conventional boilers. With efficiencies starting from 200% to 400%, they produce two to 4 occasions extra warmth than the electrical energy they use.

PRO TIP: Try how one can get one of the best out of a warmth pump in the course of the winter months.

Can an air supply warmth pump maintain my entire dwelling heat?

TJ: Sure, when sized and put in accurately, an air supply warmth pump gives regular, dependable heating in your whole dwelling, even within the coldest UK climate. The secret’s to keep in mind that your warmth pump is only one part of the full heating system. Heating your private home successfully requires correctly sized radiators that may put sufficient warmth into your private home to beat the warmth loss in every room. Underfloor heating is particularly efficient on this respect as a result of there’s a lot radiative floor space. The straightforward reply is sure, however the higher query is whether or not your private home’s heating system is designed to.

What influence does chilly climate have on a warmth pump working prices?

TJ: Identical to a boiler, heating your private home will value extra when the climate may be very chilly. Your warmth pump will work more durable to make hotter water at a better whole output and run for longer to compensate in your dwelling’s elevated warmth losses when the air is especially frosty.

Keep Cosy with a warmth pump – and get a Rosie plushie!

Improve your private home with a Cosy warmth pump and luxuriate in greener, cleaner heating all 12 months spherical. 🌍

Plus, for those who order a warmth pump or signal your warmth pump set up settlement this week (29 Sept – 5 Oct), and we’ll ship you a code to get a FREE Rosie the Cosy – our brand-new, cuddly warmth pump plushie! [See full T&Cs]