ᐅ Selecting a Heat Pump for a New Build Through the General Contractor
Created on: 11 Oct 2023 17:08
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Schnubbihh
Hello dear community,
I am currently comparing various general contractor offers for our house construction (KFW 40 with QNG).
Now I am wondering how much importance I should place on the heat pump and ventilation system offered.
Questions:
- Are there significant quality differences here that one should definitely pay attention to?
- Does a heat pump without an outdoor unit (see GU1) have any disadvantages?
- I also learned that the heat pump from GU1 uses some "older" refrigerants; is this something to be concerned about?
- How practical could a ground-source heat pump (brine/water) be? I plan to commission a soil survey for the property soon and am considering including the necessary services to assess the suitability for such a heat pump (1675€). Is this worthwhile?
- We actually find the cooling function via underfloor heating quite interesting, but apparently this is not compatible with QNG funding. Are there any experiences or "workarounds" regarding this?
- In general: Would you simply go with the contractor’s standard heat pump or try to integrate a preferable heat pump into the offer?
GU1:
Our energy-efficient houses are equipped with air-to-water heat pumps from Tecalor (Stiebel Eltron) with an integrated central ventilation system (*THZ 5.5 eco or THZ 504). The heat pumps/ventilation units include heat exchangers for heat recovery. This is a state-of-the-art complete system for heating and ventilating residential buildings. The residual heat extracted from the exhaust air is used both to support heating and to preheat the supply air (fresh air).
GU2:
For a KFW efficiency house 40, depending on the size of the house, either an exhaust air heat pump type Nibe F730/F735, an air/water heat pump type Nibe 2120, or a brine/water heat pump type Nibe 1255 is installed, each combined with a ventilation system including high-efficiency compressor technology. The exhaust air module with energy recovery is mounted directly on the heat pump. Controlled mechanical ventilation continuously removes moisture and odors from the occupied rooms and replaces them with fresh filtered air.
I am currently comparing various general contractor offers for our house construction (KFW 40 with QNG).
Now I am wondering how much importance I should place on the heat pump and ventilation system offered.
Questions:
- Are there significant quality differences here that one should definitely pay attention to?
- Does a heat pump without an outdoor unit (see GU1) have any disadvantages?
- I also learned that the heat pump from GU1 uses some "older" refrigerants; is this something to be concerned about?
- How practical could a ground-source heat pump (brine/water) be? I plan to commission a soil survey for the property soon and am considering including the necessary services to assess the suitability for such a heat pump (1675€). Is this worthwhile?
- We actually find the cooling function via underfloor heating quite interesting, but apparently this is not compatible with QNG funding. Are there any experiences or "workarounds" regarding this?
- In general: Would you simply go with the contractor’s standard heat pump or try to integrate a preferable heat pump into the offer?
GU1:
Our energy-efficient houses are equipped with air-to-water heat pumps from Tecalor (Stiebel Eltron) with an integrated central ventilation system (*THZ 5.5 eco or THZ 504). The heat pumps/ventilation units include heat exchangers for heat recovery. This is a state-of-the-art complete system for heating and ventilating residential buildings. The residual heat extracted from the exhaust air is used both to support heating and to preheat the supply air (fresh air).
GU2:
For a KFW efficiency house 40, depending on the size of the house, either an exhaust air heat pump type Nibe F730/F735, an air/water heat pump type Nibe 2120, or a brine/water heat pump type Nibe 1255 is installed, each combined with a ventilation system including high-efficiency compressor technology. The exhaust air module with energy recovery is mounted directly on the heat pump. Controlled mechanical ventilation continuously removes moisture and odors from the occupied rooms and replaces them with fresh filtered air.
R
RotorMotor12 Oct 2023 07:38An important question is what the heating load will be.
So, if KFW40 is clear, how large will the whole building be?
So, if KFW40 is clear, how large will the whole building be?
S
Schnubbihh12 Oct 2023 07:5511ant schrieb:
So you want to hire a general contractor (GC) without a tender process? That is not very advisable: Only people with too much money go to a construction company without an expert advisor. The best way to work with a GC is for them to submit a bid based on the project tender. GCs as contractors are good, but GCs instead of a tender usually come with a learning curve. We are pretty much within the typical options for GCs and have picked 2–3 who have model homes built to our specifications.
I think if we go into the open design phase with an architect now, it probably won’t end up cheaper in the end.
RotorMotor schrieb:
One important question is how high the heating load will be.
If KFW40 is clear, how big will the whole thing be? We plan about 155sqm (1670 sq ft), one and a half stories, no basement, no finished attic.
Schnubbihh schrieb:
We are pretty much within the standard range of general contractors and have shortlisted 2-3 who have a model home that meets our requirements.
I think that if we now go into custom planning with an architect, it won’t necessarily be cheaper in the end. There are certainly good general contractors (with a stable team), but contracting a general contractor through a tender process remains the safer approach. Staying within mainstream specifications and not deviating much from the offered “menu” already helps, and a guaranteed nightmare-free build without your own architect, of course, cannot be expected. However, the planning quality of a custom design is significantly higher. Where the architect completes performance phase 5, the draftsman of the general contractor just produces a formwork plan—and that’s it. The fact is, building with your own architect does not have to be more expensive if you don’t want a designer palace.
P.S.: Building becomes more expensive with your own architect only if you commission them for “performance phases 1 to 4” only.
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