Solar PV production versus heat pump consumption
For those that have solar PV and heat pumps, let’s compare our heat pump consumption versus solar PV production. I know solar PV can’t fully offset heat pump consumption (unless you’ve got batteries) but it’ll be very interesting to see comparisons.
Please state your heat pump size and solar PV array size and where you are roughly in the UK. I’ll get the ball rolling with our October 2021 numbers:
18kW Caernarfon Global Energy Systems air source heat pump: 523kWh (11.32C average temperature)
6.16kW solar PV array (west midland, Welsh borders): 373kWh
Pre-order: The Ultimate Guide to Heat Pumps
Subscribe and follow our Homeowners’ Q&A heat pump podcast
Posted by: @editorFor those that have solar PV and heat pumps, let’s compare our heat pump consumption versus solar PV production. I know solar PV can’t fully offset heat pump consumption (unless you’ve got batteries) but it’ll be very interesting to see comparisons.
Please state your heat pump size and solar PV array size and where you are roughly in the UK. I’ll get the ball rolling with our October 2021 numbers:
18kW Caernarfon Global Energy Systems air source heat pump: 523kWh (11.32C average temperature)
6.16kW solar PV array (west midland, Welsh borders): 373kWh
Hi Mars,
Whilst comparison data is always useful to have, I can see a slight problem with comparing just ASHP consumption with just solar PV generation. Some of the solar PV production will have been used within the home, so unless this can be quantified it would be difficult to assess how much solar PV was actually used to power your ASHP. There could be times when your solar PV system is providing more energy than required by your ASHP, so this excess may be used elsewhere. There will also be times when your ASHP is starting and stopping, so using all available excess solar PV energy when running, but then using very little of the excess when it is stopped. You could have a situation where your ASHP uses say 5kWh of energy in a 1 hour period, and your solar PV system generates 5kWh of excess energy over the same 1 hour period. But if your ASHP only ran for 30 minutes during that 1 hour period, then it will only have been able to utilise 2.5kWh of the available solar energy.
The other problem is that ASHP comparison does not work well with average ambient air temperature measurements, since the performance of ASHP's is greatly affected by changes in ambient air temperature, but not in a linear manner.
@derek-m, I know it's far from ideal, but if anyone wants to share their consumption of heat pumps and power generation from solar PV arrays, it'll still act as a metric for consumption and generation if nothing else.
Pre-order: The Ultimate Guide to Heat Pumps
Subscribe and follow our Homeowners’ Q&A heat pump podcast
Posted by: @editor@derek-m, I know it's far from ideal, but if anyone wants to share their consumption of heat pumps and power generation from solar PV arrays, it'll still act as a metric for consumption and generation if nothing else.
Hi Mars,
I fully agree, it would be useful to see lots of data, good and bad, so that members can make a realistic assessment of how their particular system is performing. I'm afraid it is the Engineer in me, that was trained to make the end user aware of the limitations of any measurement taken or data collected.
- 26 Forums
- 2,171 Topics
- 47.8 K Posts
- 55 Online
- 5,744 Members
Join Us!
Podcast Picks
Latest Posts
-
RE: Help me keep the faith with my air source heat pump installation
The answer contractually is whoever you contracted with...
By JamesPa , 5 minutes ago
-
So far as I can tell designing for DT5, which is 'the n...
By JamesPa , 7 minutes ago
-
RE: Powerwall 3 or Myenergi or something else?
Having had a chance to test this now, I can confirm tha...
By Old_Scientist , 2 hours ago
-
Mitsu PAR-WT60R Wireless Controller - options
I hope I have satisfactorily installed the above wirele...
By DavidAlgarve , 2 hours ago
-
WC curve best discovered by experiment anyway as any lo...
By JamesPa , 7 hours ago
-
RE: Big Changes Coming to Our Heat Pump System
@editor your engineer's attitude is truly horrifying. ...
By GrahamF , 24 hours ago
-
RE: How to choose Towel Rails for an ASHP
@rob-nezard yes absolutely. Here is the link and a pho...
By GrahamF , 1 day ago
-
@mixergy Thanks for the update, I would appreciate some...
By bontwoody , 1 day ago
-
RE: Is Your Broadband Router the Weak Link in Your High-Tech Home?
Unfortunately I'm not that well connected 😂 ...
By Scalextrix , 1 day ago
-
RE: A Customer's Lessons Learnt from a Heat Pump Installation in a Large House
It is interesting to see what our new Grant Aerona 290 ...
By GrahamF , 1 day ago
-
RE: Testing new controls/monitoring for Midea Clone ASHP
I've never physically seen it, but I seem to recall som...
By cathodeRay , 1 day ago
-
RE: Midea ASHP – how to set weather compensation
I noticed that too and thought the same thing, but then...
By cathodeRay , 2 days ago
-
RE: Ya can’t win! It is S*d’s Law!
@old_scientist If IOF is still running next late spring...
By Toodles , 2 days ago
-
RE: Electricity price predictions
Those of you on Agile will do well tomorrow; there are ...
By Toodles , 2 days ago
-
RE: Who’s Caved and Switched the Heating On Already?
We've been running our Ecodan system, installed in June...
By Sheriff Fatman , 2 days ago
-
Ok. Two schools of thought. The first is to run the ...
By JamesPa , 3 days ago
-
@drei Willing as I am to help, I don't think I'm yet ...
By JamesPa , 3 days ago
-
Selling 5 year old ASHP & Gas Combi Boiler - £590
Selling a 5-year-old Daikin Altherma Hybrid Air Source ...
By Paul G , 3 days ago
-
RE: Is a Valliant Inline 6kW heater a BUS buster?
Much of that is true in principle, but its not likely t...
By JamesPa , 5 days ago