Ground Source Collector sizing and design

Correct GSHP Collector sizing is essential for the correct operation of the heat pump system. Without correct sizing the following problems can occur:

• Ground freezing (creating tundra)
• Overcool running of collector, reducing the efficiency of the system.
• Poor operation in periods of dry weather.
• Ground heave and swelling.
• Localised freezing.
• Plant and tree death.
• Non-operation of the heat pump system.
• Freezing collector resulting in long-term damage.

Furthermore, if not correctly installed then the water can get infected which clogs up the collector permenantly, a very costly remedy.Collectors should be serviced routinely to ensure they have not become infected.Planet Heat has sufficient experience to ensure that your ground collector is correctly designed and installed, resulting in expected performance beyond the life of the heat pump itself.

Site Survey and Heat Pump Sizing

MCS Certification standard MIS3005 demands that when installing a heat pump in a property that a thorough, room-by-room (i.e. not "whole-house") heat loss calculation is performed. The heat loss calculation is extrapolated to cover the entire operational envelope that the house is expected to experience during winter, including extremes of weather - this means a heat loss calculation with a -10C (or worse) ambient may be required. A radiator design that takes into account the optimum (not peak heat pump output) flow temperatures. This generally means a significantly "oversized" radiator system. This is required to maximise the efficiency of a heat pump installation. If it is not performed correctly the following may occur:

• Higher than expected fuel bills.
• Insufficiently warm house below certain ambient weather conditions.
• Some rooms not achieving desired room temperature.
• Overcycling of heat pump resulting in premature failure.
• Freezing of the ground collector (which in extreme cases can result in formation of tundra).
• Noisy operation of the system.

Planet Heat is sufficiently experienced and qualified to perform these calculations, and can provide you with a design with schematic for your MCS-certified engineers to follow. Your level of inexperience in a particular area can be supplemented by our capabilities and designs.The result is a happy customer for years to come and should the design be found wanting, someone to answer for it (and fix, if needed). We take the risk for you.Our fees reflect how much of the MCS MIS3005 standard you are currently incapable of complying with. We can also help you succeed in gaining and/or retaining your MCS accreditation/certification, as we have helped many companies achieve the same.

Servicing, maintenance and fault-finding

We have over a decade of experience of installing, servicing, fault-finding and repairing a wide range of manufacturer's heat pumps - air, water and ground source.If your brand is not shown, we can still support it.We also perform bespoke engineering maintenance and installation of most heating-related technologies, such as thermostats, controls, pumps, vessels, etc etc.

Site Survey - heat loss calculations and recommendations

There is always a need for performing accurate heat loss calculations on properties to support various tasks, such as sizing boiler systems, underfloor heating systems and other load/demand calculations.Planet Heat has the capability and technology to perform such calculations, as requested.Furthermore, we have specialist internet-connected multi-sensor logging equipment that can be easily deployed on a system not performing optimally to monitor its behaviour over a long period of time, find and diagnose the problem(s), make corrective action and continue the monitoring to ensure optimal performance.

System monitoring and analysis

Got a system that's misbehaving? We have all the equipment to log its performance, with full remote access, allowing every minute of operation to be recorded and analysed.We can produce detailed graphs of operation - sometimes it's easier to analyse a system visually to spot that short event that is causing problems. With so much experience with heat pumps we know exactly how they should behave, and can make recommendations for ourselves or your engineers to fix.Normally only one site visit is required to install the monitoring equipment and you can post it back to us when the monitoring is complete (usually after corrective action has been made, to check it's worked).