It’s a turbulent time for the heating industry. The government plans to phase out gas boilers in newbuilds from 2025 and is encouraging homeowners to get heat pumps installed to improve their properties’ energy efficiency.
But rising gas and electricity prices are on the verge of forcing millions of households into fuel poverty as the cost-of-living crisis bites, leaving people desperately searching for ways to reduce their fuel bills.
Figures show take-up of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which offers £5,000 grants towards the cost of installing heat pumps and biomass boilers in England and Wales, has been disappointing to date. So far, only 2,500 vouchers have been issues out of the 30,000 vouchers available for this financial year, suggesting that homeowners are reluctant to invest in this technology as everyone begins to tighten their belt.
Then you have to consider that recent Building Regulation changes require all heating systems in new properties – or those undergoing substantial refurbishment – to be designed with a 55°C maximum flow temperature, which will have a significant impact on the way the system has a whole has to be designed to ensure high efficiencies.
So where does that leave heating engineers? What systems should you be installing now to futureproof your customers’ homes?
With the impending demise of gas boilers many new technologies are now jostling to be the next mainstream UK heat source, but we don’t yet know which is going to come out on top. Will it be heat pumps? Hydrogen boilers? Biomass boilers? Or something totally new that hasn’t yet come to market?
What we do know is that any heat emitters fitted today will need to be suitable for use with as many fuel sources as possible, to futureproof your customers against whatever changes lie ahead.
Underfloor heating (UFH) works with all types of heat generators, from gas boilers to heat pumps and biomass boilers. Water-based UFH is also the most efficient type of heat emitter available on the market and, when designed and installed correctly, will work perfectly with whatever the cheapest, most energy secure fuel source is at the time a property’s heating system is being upgraded. By fitting UFH in your customers’ homes you will make it easier for them to make the switch from the fuel source they use now, to whichever technology ultimately becomes mainstream. Especially since modern UFH systems should be expected to last at least 50 years.
In an uncertain world where no-one is sure what’s going to happen with energy prices and UK energy security, fitting UFH gives everyone some much-needed certainty.
Want to learn more about how the heating industry is changing? Call our experienced Technical Sales Advisers now on 01566 772 322 or email info@continal.co.uk for more information.
