The domestic heat pump has now become a problem for areas denser population due to noise. This could lead to the need for planning permission, if granted and acoustic insulation surrounding any new heat pump, adding to the already high cost of installation and adaptation of existing heating and hot water systems.
Heat pumps’ noise raises concerns for millions of UK homes - Energy Live News
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Hi
Before I downsized to a much smaller property I lived in an Eco House, purchased new, for 7 years.
It had an Air Source Heat Pump, but unlike the ones the Government are promoting, this was in the garden some distance from the house.
Because it was freestanding it was much more efficient from those attached to the house and was therefore on for much shorter periods.
Yes they can be a bit noisy, however they are just an air conditioning unit in reverse.
Think about your holidays abroad, air conditioning units on all the time, in Urban Areas the effect is minimal as regards background noise.
Yes, you would notice them in a small rural village, you would need a different type.
The one size fits all does not work everywhere.
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Doesn’t the UK have noise pollution laws? I am sure it does.
A/C and that includes heat pump water heaters must not be audible from the adjacent property. They are designed to be quiet. shhhh!
My neighbour’s A/C is close to my house, I cannot hear it, my fridge is louder
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A friend in Melbourne installed a Reclaim air-source heat pump hot water unit, and the noise from the unit is barely audible. Quality of installation matters. Keeping some space between the walls will greatly reduce the noise level.
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Thanks for the tip. The Emerald Energy 200-liter split system heat pump I installed in my backyard is very quiet (49db mentioned on its spec sheet), even though there’s no gap between the drywall and the unit.
My daughter’s heat pump is as quiet as, I can’t hear it standing right next to it.
I don’t understand why they are a problem in the UK.
I’m not sure our heat pumps are the same. They certainly look different:
When they are running on less than full load, most are quiet; its when fully loaded that the nose becomes intrusive.
That just looks like an air con but they are exactly the same just in reverse, in my daughter’s it is mounted on the top of the water tank whereas her air con is on the wall at the other side of the house
That is just poor design, air cons are common here and the law specifies maximum noise output. Reverse cycle air cons and water heaters are the same device