ᐅ New Single-Family Home Built to KfW55 Standard – Which Heating System to Choose?
Created on: 19 Jul 2020 12:19
T
Traube348
Hello everyone,
I have read many articles and would now like to benefit from the extensive knowledge of the members here.
A brief overview of my building project:
- Single-family house with approximately 160sqm (1,722 sq ft) of living space
- No basement, 2 full floors with an unfinished attic
- Relatively large window areas and an open-plan design with a staircase in the living area
- Underfloor heating throughout the house with tile flooring
- KfW 55 standard with timber frame construction
- A wood-burning stove will be installed
Unfortunately, I have little experience in this area and rely on recommendations from others regarding heating.
On the ground floor, we have a utility room of 8sqm (86 sq ft) where we would like to accommodate all the technical equipment.
The builder recommends installing a central ventilation system, which we would like to do.
Now to my question:
There is a gas connection in our building area, and a friend told me we should definitely heat with a gas boiler. To meet the KfW standard, according to the energy consultant, we still need to install 9sqm (97 sq ft) of solar panels on the roof.
A heating engineer friend advises: choose an air-to-water heat pump – split system Weishaupt LS 8-BREK – so you can avoid the solar requirement.
I have requested quotes for both options from different heating engineers, and they come out roughly the same in price.
Since I have heard many statements opposing air-to-water heat pumps, I tend to prefer gas.
However, the main challenge is the limited space in the utility room. In addition to the heating system, the two-flue fireplace, and the ventilation system, the electrical control cabinet as well as the washing machine and dryer are also planned to be located there.
Is there anyone who has faced a similar space issue?
What would you recommend?
Thank you very much in advance for your help.
I have read many articles and would now like to benefit from the extensive knowledge of the members here.
A brief overview of my building project:
- Single-family house with approximately 160sqm (1,722 sq ft) of living space
- No basement, 2 full floors with an unfinished attic
- Relatively large window areas and an open-plan design with a staircase in the living area
- Underfloor heating throughout the house with tile flooring
- KfW 55 standard with timber frame construction
- A wood-burning stove will be installed
Unfortunately, I have little experience in this area and rely on recommendations from others regarding heating.
On the ground floor, we have a utility room of 8sqm (86 sq ft) where we would like to accommodate all the technical equipment.
The builder recommends installing a central ventilation system, which we would like to do.
Now to my question:
There is a gas connection in our building area, and a friend told me we should definitely heat with a gas boiler. To meet the KfW standard, according to the energy consultant, we still need to install 9sqm (97 sq ft) of solar panels on the roof.
A heating engineer friend advises: choose an air-to-water heat pump – split system Weishaupt LS 8-BREK – so you can avoid the solar requirement.
I have requested quotes for both options from different heating engineers, and they come out roughly the same in price.
Since I have heard many statements opposing air-to-water heat pumps, I tend to prefer gas.
However, the main challenge is the limited space in the utility room. In addition to the heating system, the two-flue fireplace, and the ventilation system, the electrical control cabinet as well as the washing machine and dryer are also planned to be located there.
Is there anyone who has faced a similar space issue?
What would you recommend?
Thank you very much in advance for your help.
At the moment, the recommendation seems quite clear to me: air-to-water heat pump or ground-to-water heat pump combined with solar. We also have a gas connection, and with a bit of research, it quickly becomes apparent that any cost savings compared to a heat pump are minimal at best and can be calculated in both directions.
Choosing gas as a finite energy source nowadays in a new build remains a mystery to me.
Choosing gas as a finite energy source nowadays in a new build remains a mystery to me.
Traube348 schrieb:
Since I have also heard many statements here against an air-to-water heat pump, I would prefer gas. I don’t see any specific reason why an air-to-water heat pump should be ruled out. What is often mentioned or criticized is that the air-to-water heat pump is chosen (or recommended) inappropriately for the house, which leads to less economical heating than possible. Often, they tend to be oversized. But others here probably know more about that than I do.
Here are a few points that argue against gas:
- A gas connection requires an additional house connection (which saved us about 2000€ (approximately $2200))
- Gas is a potential safety hazard inside the house
- Gas is a fossil fuel and, like oil, is limited in supply, although probably not in the short term
- Unlike electricity, gas cannot be generated from renewable sources. Given the current escalating climate issues and the expected climate policies, we assumed that CO2 emissions will be taxed significantly in the future, making heating with gas more expensive. (Note: This is our speculation. Of course, things could turn out differently).
kati1337 schrieb:
Gas cannot [...] be produced from renewable sources. Bold claim. Especially nowadays, when "power-to-gas" is being heavily promoted in the media like never before. You can have your opinion regarding the land use of biogas plants, but by definition they also process renewable raw materials.
During and after World War II, wood gas vehicles were common in Germany.
Sorry Katia, but you are writing a lot of incorrect information. Gas will be available for a very long time and, with a high probability, can be efficiently produced from renewable energy.
And 2000 for the gas connection is not much—the heat pump costs more than the gas boiler with solar. He needs a chimney anyway because of the wood stove.
And 2000 for the gas connection is not much—the heat pump costs more than the gas boiler with solar. He needs a chimney anyway because of the wood stove.
MayrCh schrieb:
Bold claim. And this at a time when the “power-to-gas” topic is being pushed through the media more than ever before. You can have your own opinion about land use for biogas plants, but by definition they also process renewable raw materials.
During and after World War II, there were wood gasifier vehicles in Germany. Okay, I actually didn’t know there were serious efforts regarding biogas.
I have corrected my post accordingly.
Edit: Unfortunately, I can no longer edit it. So I’m correcting here: I meant natural gas.
Bookstar schrieb:
And 2000 for the gas connection is not much – the heat pump costs more than the gas boiler with solar. He needs a chimney anyway because of the wood stove. I mentioned the 2000 because many people only compare the direct costs. With the 2000 savings and the BAFA subsidy, we ended up spending about the same amount on the air-to-water heat pump including the controlled residential ventilation system.
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