Episodios
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The microgeneration certification scheme (MCS) recently became aware of a non-certified business targeting and encouraging MCS installers to break scheme requirements.
We chat to Ben who has recently become MCS registered to discuss the situation along with his transitional journey into the world of heat pumps.
We also discuss a current topical: Government funded heat pump training, which Nathan argues is not working as well as it should.Support the show
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In this podcast Nathan chats with his friends Barry from Renewable Heat and Matt from Matt Rigby Heating Ltd.
The guests and Nathan discuss Matts journey from a gas engineer to a heat pump engineer. It mentions how Barry has provided mentorship which is a far better way to help gas engineers transition than the current system of just sending them on a powerpoint course.
This season is sponsored by Ultimate Renewables SuppliesSupport the show
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Nathan was kindly invited by the Heat Geek team to host a podcast at their Installer Show stand where he chatted to Adam Chapman, founder of Heat Geek and Karolis Petruskevicius the brains behind Homely
The discussion involves what is currently happening in the heat pump industry as well as Homely's heat pump optimisation tool.
Enjoy!Support the show
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In this episode Nathan chats with Fiona, CEO of SNIPEF and Barry, a regular podcast guest and a Snipef member.
Snipef presented talks at the Green Homes Festival during Edinburg Festival month and Nathan discusses the talks with his guest and the potential Edinburgh has in switching to heat pumpsSupport the show
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This is the second episode of the special Heat Pump Ready podcast series, in collaboration with the Carbon Trust with funding from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
In this episode, Nathan talks to 4 Heat Pump Ready projects to discuss ‘How Innovation can improve the heat pump survey and design process’.
Key topics discussed include:
- Ways to improve heat loss calculations, the limitations of standard methods and the potential role of measured heat loss in heat pump surveys.
- Innovative tools to improve and streamline the survey process, potentially reducing the need for surveyors to visit properties to generate quotes and system designs
- What tools do engineers and installers need to deliver an excellent result to their customers?
A summary of the speakers and their Heat Pump Ready projects is provided below:
Thomas Whiffen – GEO
Utilising data from an existing portfolio of energy modelling and smart thermostat technologies, GEO is looking to provide a solution that will deliver an estimate of a heat pump system required for a property before a boots-on-the-ground assessment.
Hermione Crease – Purrmetrix
Working with Hoare Lea, this project will use in-home energy monitoring to calculate the heat loss of a property and provide a forecast of appropriate heat pump products that would suit the homeowner.
Richard Jack – Build test Solutions
In conjunction with Veritherm and Elmhurst, Build Test Solutions use their expertise in measured domestic energy use to determine an accurate heat loss of a property, which can then be used for accurate heat pump sizing.
Griff Thomas: Heatly
Using just your phone camera and the Heatly app, this tool will allow a homeowner to conduct a building survey themselves and receive a complete heat pump design. Supporting both installers and homeowners.
The views expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and do not represent the views of the Government or the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
Support the show
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Emma Bohan from IMS Heating came up with the idea for surveying heat pump installation companies big and small. She brought me on board with the project and I had Nesta help with the construction of the survey and its analysis.
The podcast episode was recorded in front of a live audience at the Installer Show 2024 with some audience questions at the end.
Take a look at the survey report hereSupport the show
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In the first episode of season 10 which is being sponsored by Ultimate Renewables Supplies Nathan speaks with Madeleine Gabriel the Mission Director for Sustainable Future mission at NESTA and Adam Bell, formerly a civil servant at DECC, BEIS and DESNZ and now policy Director at Stonehaven.
Support the show
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In this episode I spoke to Nigel Banks, Technical Director at Octopus Energy. Nigel is author of Fabric Fifth which many now see as the common sense approach to retrofitting and decarbonising homes.
UKREiiF event, and lack of heat pump knowledgeFramework lists for Social Housing and Local AuthoritiesConflicts of interest regarding PAS2035Cavity Wall Insulation (and Zone 4)LA's are stuck between a rock and a hard placeHeat Pump Optimisers such as Passiv UK and HomelyTackling fuel poverty at scaleThe able to pay market vs the fuel poverty marketTrust Mark - does it work? Possibly notUnconscious incompetence
Nigel spoke in a personal capacity. I was extremely grateful he came on the show. I have been critical of Octopus in certain regards but am also well aware they are doing important work. It was a pleasure to have Nigel speak on my show.
I also chatted with Dan Kelly, Managing Director at Dartmoor Energy. Dan has nine years experience with heat pump systems as well as being a qualified PAS2035 retrofit coordinator and assessor.
For me, the episode helps illustrate that the fa bric first mantra has possibly led the UK down the wrong path. And it could be argued there has been a waste of Government funds, essentially tax payers money.
The most vehement of fabric first advocates, to me, clearly do not understand why the forefathers of thermodynamics got excited about heat pumps: things which used work to do heat rather than things which use heat to do work. The former being able to reach well above the 100 percent efficiency cap of the later.
It highlights how many are not taking ownership of their own learning and understanding what people like Lord Kelvin knew back in 1852.
It has been far too easy for people to disseminate "fabric first". Quite honestly it is often laziness and highlights a lack of professional development
It is totally understandable that consumers do not understand the science of heat but for those involved in the discourse, especially if they are being paid and funded via money from the tax payer they need to take ownership of their own learning and bring them selves up to speed.
What's discussed:I'd like to thank Grundfos for sponsoring this season of BetaTalk
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Nathan was grateful the IMA reached out to ask if their CEO, Simon Storer, could come on the podcast to contribute to a very interesting debate.
Nigel Banks from Octopus (who wrote this fabric article) was scheduled to appear on the show and will be coming on for a follow up episode.
Nathan was very grateful Richard Erskine, who could step in at short notice to be a guest host, who has lots to offer in the debate and wrote the very good "Insulate Britain! Yes, but by how much" essay.
Great episode which will be continuedSupport the show
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Nathan sat down to chat all things heat pumps and training with Clayton Brown from CB Heating.
EDF acquired CB Heating back in 2022 which is one of the largest heat pump installation entities in the UK.
EDF’s strategic investment and partnership with CB Heating have supported the development of the HPIN Academy. This academy provides free training to upskill engineers at every level in the UK.
The episode also discusses the recent partnership between Ideal Heating, a group Atlantic company, who manufacture and supply heat pumps.
Take a listenSupport the show
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Heat pumps move energy from and energy source e.g. air, ground water (hence they are called :air source, ground source) to a sink.
The sink is the emitter system within a home e.g. radiators, underfloor heating (UFH) and fan coils.
Engineers, Installers, designers and the occupants of a home rely on radiators having accurate power output data. Unfortuanlty, it looks like their is a big problem in the radiator industry: the published power outputs are being over stated.
This has huge consequences for heat pump systems which rely on designers designing a heat pump system which can operate at the lowest possible design temperature.
Higher flow temperature to radiators requires the heat pump's compressor to work harder an use more electricity, resulting in more demand on the grid and higher fuel bills for the customer.
Rob Nezard from UK Radiators has spotted a problem across the whole of the radiator supply chain and created a video to prove this. Nathan went to visit Rob (watch on youtube) to discuss the problemSupport the show
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In this episode Nathan chats to Paul Eastwood, Head of Energy Systems Planning at OFGEM and the past Senior Climate and Energy Advisor at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Heat loss assessments and independent assessments.Securing quotes for heat pump installationsInstall optionsHeat pump controls and operationsHeat pump servicingWhy do heat pump installs cost more than boiler installations
Also joining the heat pump conversation is engineer Barry Sharpe from Renewable Heat
The discussion focuses on what an ideal customer journey is. Paul has had a heat pump system after Nathan recommended Barry to him. The episode questions if Paul's experience could have been better with the hope engineers may gain some useful insight.
Topics covered are:This was one of Nathan's favourite recordings and he would like to note that Paul is speaking in a personal capacity and not on behalf of any employer.
Please enjoy the episode.Support the show
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Sweden have had a long tradition with heating technologies and have incredible expertise regarding heat pumps.
Nathan talks to the Swedish company AIRA, the new entrant to the UK's heating and home renewables industry.
AIRA will be installing heat pump and other technologies across Europe bringing their expertise first to Italy, Germany and the UK.
It's a great episode and Nathan enjoyed his conversation with Daniel Sarefjord, the chief executive of Aira in the UK, immensely.Support the show
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As the title states, you are a very special group of people to me. You listen to me ramble on about heating for a start and I am very grateful for that.. So, thank you. I appreciate that very much.
This is the first episode of 2024 and I wanted to do something a bit special. Something for you.
As you know, this podcast is called BetaTALK... and the talk aspect is very important. In order to help accelerate the mainstream adoption of transitional heating technologies we first need people to start talking about them. We need to get people talking about heating in a positive and fun way. So how do we do that?
This is something I care about and I know this is something you care about too. You care about getting people to talk about heating. But it's challenging.
So, to help you, Lawrence and I have developed a tool. It's a practical tool and it will engender conversations around heating.
It's new, it's fun, and it's very quirky.
Take a listen and meet my partner Lawrence... together we have started up Jouln
As well as home owner listeners if you are associated with Local Authorities, Social Housing Groups, construction companies and even energy suppliers and interested in Digital Twins /artificial intelligence and how they can help you then please contact us at [email protected]
Once again, thank you for being part of something special.Support the show
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Season 9 is sponsored by Grundfos and in this episode Nathan speaks to James Twallin about the software and codes behind the heating industry.
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In this episode Nathan chats to Paul Spence, a very competent and highly regarded heating engineer. Paul installs a range of heating system types including heat pumps.
It's a long but highly interesting episode. If you want to hear Paul's credentials first skip to around the 1hr 05 min mark... and then come back to the beginning of course.
Paul also runs the facebook group HeatPumps UK...check it out
Enjoy!Support the show
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Here is the link to the heat pump installer survey (lot's of prizes to be won)
In this episode Nathan speaks with Glyn Hudson and Trystan Lea who along with open source enthusiasts have created open energy monitor and heat pump monitor.
Heat pump installers and consumers are installing monitoring equipment such as heat meters onto their heat pump systems to obtain COP readings. COP stands for the coefficient of performance.
The monitoring has provided the oppotunity for engineers and home owners to learn from each other about what works what doesn't work.
Arguably, other monitoring schemes (which cost the tax payer money) have caused a headache to the energy transition movement because such studies were using incompetent installation companies to put these heating systems in. This has meant a low COP average which the fossil fuel industry loves to allude to.
These schemes have not shed much, if any, data on system design so no one has really learned anything from them.
Conversely, this platform has engendered a hive of learning with engineers not only being able to learn from each other but also being able to validate their competence to prospective customers.
It's a great episode...take a listenSupport the show
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