As gas, oil and electricity prices rise heating our homes using traditional fossil fuels is no longer the choice many people wish to make. And lots of us have ambitions to switch to cleaner and greener ways to run our homes and are starting to assess our options.
Apart from home energy, many of us are making everyday decisions based on sustainability. Our eco-conscious decisions could be about the food we eat or which brands we buy based on how easy it is to recycle their packaging. Heating our homes also falls under the sustainability umbrella, with lots of homeowners and businesses seeking renewable energy sources.
In the quest for carbon neutrality, companies have created various green heating systems to try and reduce the devastating impact of global warming. With that in mind, check out these five green heating systems you didn’t know about but could change the way you heat your home!
Ground source heat pumps
Instead of relying on traditional oil or gas, ground source heat pumps (GSHPs) draw heat from the ground and are growing in popularity, thanks to their environmental credentials. The world is turning to renewable energy as quickly as possible, with the UK committing to net-zero emissions by 2050. Besides their impact on the environment, it is becoming more expensive to heat homes and businesses using fossil fuels, and although GSHPs will increase your property’s electricity demand, switching to this technology will dramatically reduce your CO2.
GSHPs pump a brine of water and antifreeze through pipes in the ground. As the liquid circulates around the pipe, it absorbs heat from the ground as it goes. The heated fluid is then fed through a heat exchanger which in turn warms your home.
Temperatures underground stay stable throughout the entire year, which makes GSHPs more predictable to use than other heating methods.
Hydrogen boilers
Conventional gas and oil heating systems need replacing if we are to comply with the government’s net-zero emissions plans for the future. It’s possible to produce hydrogen using water electrolysis, and if the energy to power the process is generated through renewables like wind and solar power, the hydrogen has no carbon footprint at all.
Industrial-scale production of hydrogen isn’t fully carbon-neutral yet but large energy companies like Siemens Energy and ITM are making adjustments to their methods.
Hydrogen boilers for home use work in a similar way to a conventional boiler. They use hydrogen gas as a fuel to heat your home or water. Currently, hydrogen boilers are hybrid heating systems, burning a mixture of hydrogen and natural gas. However, when the UK is ready to switch to hydrogen over methane, current hydrogen-ready boilers will not require changing.
Infrared heating panels
Infrared heating panels work slightly differently from the conventional gas boiler. Instead of heating the air in your home, infrared heating panels warm up solid objects through infrared energy.
This absorbed energy causes the molecules in an object, person or room to vibrate and warm up. With a range of three metres, it’s necessary to install several in your home to give each room the heat it requires.
Biomass boilers
Another environmentally sound heating solution, is a biomass boiler. These boilers burn biomass fuels, such as wood pellets or logs, which can be considered a renewable form of energy as they are able to regenerate
The burning of biomass emits as much carbon dioxide as was absorbed when the plants used CO2 as a fuel when they were growing. It is for this reason that biomass is considered to be carbon neutral. Biomass boilers are efficient at burning biomass as fuel, and using the heat produced to provide hot water and warmth.
Air source heat pumps
Being able to magic something out of thin air is typically reserved for illusionists but air source heat pumps turn the air around your property into warmth. An air source heat pump (ASHP) gathers heat from the air that circulates outside, and uses it for hot water and heating.
It’s a little like how your fridge works, but in reverse. The temperature of the air outside your home is used to warm a liquid refrigerant. Refrigerants are chemical compounds that carry heat by changing from a gas to a liquid and back to gas, a process which generates heat. An ASHP captures this heat, boosts it and then circulates it around your home.
ASHPs use less electricity than traditional electric heating systems and are very effective in well insulated, modern homes. They are particularly efficient when combined with solar panel systems.
The latest green energy solutions at Geo Green Power
Here at Geo Green Power, we are committed to providing renewable and sustainable energy We specialise in the installation and maintenance of heat pumps, and also look after biomass boilers. Contact us for more information about the latest green heating systems.
