World of Energy

The world of energy has never felt as important or as fast moving, as now, energy is at the top of our, Residential, Commercial & Industrial Client agenda's.

It has in recent weeks been highlighted how even the suggestion of a shortage or large fuel price increase, has the knock on effect of fuel supplies drying up on UK forecourts, retail energy providers going out of business and issues in the food supply chain with the lack of CO2 production..

 

Residential Heating

Back in 1970, just a third of our homes had central heating, by 1990 this had increased to 80%.

Over the last few decades we’ve become used to cheap and convenient heat. But according to the Committee on Climate Change, heating is responsible for almost a third of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Today, 95% of UK homes are centrally heated, the vast majority relying on gas or oil-fired boilers.

Gas and oil are fossil fuels, both release carbon dioxide (CO2) – a ‘greenhouse gas’ that contributes to climate change, heating systems, contribute approximately 30% of the UK’s total greenhouse emissions, with Homes forming half of this figure.

There is a need to urgently decarbonise society, COP26, emphasized we need to accelerate the pace of decarbonisation and keep the lights on and buildings warm.

 

Future Home Standard

The UK Government have decided to act. The ‘Future Home Standard' will take effect in 2025, requiring all new-build homes to adopt lower-carbon heating alternatives.

Whether you are planning a refurbishment / new Build Project or not, it is still worth considering opting for a more renewable heating solution. Not only will this contribute to the decarbonisation of the UK, but, in the long run, you could save money on heating costs.

 

What are the alternatives to gas or oil central heating?

As the UK government are encouraging everyone to go greener, moving from a conventional central heating system to an eco-friendly alternative has never been easier.

There are many options to choose from, such as:

• Heat pumps

• Heat networks

• Hydrogen boilers

• Electric radiators

 

Quick solutions

If you want to install a none gas or oil fuelled solution quickly then the obvious choice is heat pumps or electric radiators, however they must be coupled with building improvements, such as insulation, draughtproofing etc... otherwise the capital costs increase disproportionately, along with unexpected high running costs.

 

Heat recovery

Something a lot of Client are pleasantly surprised by is how effective heat recovery ventilation systems are in different types of Building.

How many times have you noticed a cooker hood, toilet ventilation or other extract system discharging hot air to outside in the middle of winter, its just a waste of energy, the use of Mechanical Ventilation Heat Recovery (MVHR) fan would recover the heat, thereby reducing the Buildings running costs and improve indoor air quality.

These heat recovery systems can be installed as part of the refurbishment / new Build process or increasingly popular adding the system as a specific one off Project to an existing building, with prices starting at £150 + VAT for a basic heat recovery fan unit, often they can be connected to an existing ductwork system.

 

Conclusion

Engineers at Azimuth MEP Consulting have been involved in the efficient use of energy for over 30 years and seen the transition of fuel sources within buildings from coal, electricity, oil, gas and now back to electricity for heat pumps and renewable sources.

Azimuth MEP Consulting have an important unbiased role in the Design Team or direct with a Client to help recommend in a constructive manner, the best MEP Engineering to help informed better decisions to be made.

We don’t have all the answers, but what we do know is that if we come together as a Design team, we are going to be much better placed to help solve the biggest challenge humanity has ever faced.

Our role has never been more important as society looks at our sector to keep the lights on and our buildings warm.

Every Building is different, therefore every solution is different, for impartial advice, you need to appoint an experienced Engineer to carry out a new design or modernisation survey, so please contact Azimuth MEP Consulting Ltd.,

Telephone 0333 3355 107 

Email enquiries@azimuthmepconsulting.co.uk,