Which type of pump do I need? – Heat Pumps

Air Source Heat Pump

An Air Source Heat Pump is normally fitted to the side of a building, drawing in the air from the outside and using a mechanism to compress and increase its temperature. Unlike Ground Source Heat Pumps, Air Source Heat pumps don’t require a huge amount of construction works and it could lower your existing energy bills if you are replacing conventional heating.

Ground Source Heat Pump

Ground Source Heat Pumps draw from the solar energy stored in the ground or water. These pumps have higher efficiencies than air source heat pumps as the temperatures are generally more constant, however, major construction work has to be undertaken if you want to install a Ground Source Heat Pump. Again, you could lower your existing energy bills if you are replacing conventional heating.

Hybrid Heat Pump

A Hybrid Heat Pump utilises another energy source such as a gas boiler, which together provides a more constant source of warmth at a higher level of efficiency. This means you don’t need to change your radiators if you have an existing heat generation source such as a boiler and decide to install a hybrid Heat Pump.

It is also possible to have a mix of ground and air source heat pumps to increase efficiency by drawing on the ground source heat pump energy when the air is colder and drawing from the air source heat pump when the air is warmer.

Absorption Heat Pumps

Absorption heat pumps are essentially air-source heat pumps however they are not powered by electricity, rather they are powered by a heat source such as natural gas, propane, solar-heated water or geothermal-heated water. Natural gas is most commonly used, which is why they are also referred to as gas-fired heat pumps. The difference in absorption heat pumps is that evaporated ammonia is not pumped up in pressure in a compressor, but instead absorbed into the water to be later boiled out of the water.