The heat pump works like a fridge, but backwards, sucking stored solar energy from the earth (not from its core – that would be geo-thermal) via enormous lengths of fluid-filled coiled pipe buried four or five feet down.
A condenser (which squeezes a liquid or gas) then exploits the principles of latent heat and the Second Law of Thermodynamics (stay with me). Heat passes from areas of higher temperature (your nicely warmed pipes) to those of lower temperature (your chilly house).
There are now all kinds of clever variants available: water-source heat pumps, air-source pumps and reversible heat pumps like the one Jo and Paul Tarling, builders of the eco bungalow in Kent, installed in their foundations in the last series. That one could put heat back into the ground in summer to cool the building. Next up is a new generation of absorption chillers – fridges that only need a heat source, not electricity, to run – which use a more complicated combination of fluids. There’s even talk of powering them entirely from the sun.
Of course, there’s one example of latent heat technology that we all understand – one that a well-designed house with a vent at the top and some opening windows on the ground floor will be able to exploit: sweating. As your body’s moisture evaporates in moving air it cools the skin. Simple. It turns out the most efficient cooling systems of all are our own bodies. Right Guard, back off.
Do you want to bin your boiler? Know any great tips for saving heat? Email info@granddesignsmagazine.com
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