ᐅ Comparison of Groundwater, Ground Source, and Air Source Heat Pumps

Strahleman schrieb:

I don’t think anyone here is idolizing the heat pump or promoting it as a cure-all. If you don’t want cooling, are looking for an affordable heating source, and already have a gas line at the house, of course you can use gas. But even in cold regions, I wouldn’t want to install an air-to-water heat pump.

Well... idolize the supply temperature, yes, but I read that for many, there simply isn’t any other option from the start. Just as an example: I often see thread openings like, “I’m planning a townhouse, KfW55 standard, underfloor heating, air-to-water heat pump, KNX...”.
Then I think, okay, a young person wants to build a house for their family and understandably often has zero knowledge or experience that would have given them that kind of confidence.
To me, this suggests that some kind of pressure, advertising, or fear influenced them to choose something they mostly don’t really know yet.
What I miss is the questioning of WHAT is truly the best and most suitable option for my family. The supply temperature, a heating system with wood, radiators, electricity, gas, a specific heat pump system—why the fixed focus on the so-called villa instead of asking what would be best for ME INDIVIDUALLY as living space INSIDE that fits our lifestyle? Predetermined must-haves often take hold uncritically with some builders, even with me as an older applicant with various house-building experience this kind of thing has an effect.
Many talk about KNX and so on (I have no knowledge of it myself and won’t miss it), but during the thread you’ll read from insiders that they actually knew nothing about it except that they wanted it—whatever the reason!
Likewise, there is often a desire for a certain KfW standard without much consideration of possible other effects or circumstances that come with it.
For this reason—and only for this reason—I advocate for more variety. Yes, I get the impression that some things are regarded as the ultimate or so-called must-haves, even though that usually isn’t the case or wouldn’t hold up to a factual discussion.
For example, if you don’t have the right tradesperson or general contractor, a heat pump can turn into a nightmare; or if you receive an excessively overpriced quote for drilling, that can also be the wrong decision.
By the way, what good cooling options are available with an air-to-water heat pump?

pagoni2020 schrieb:

By the way, what effective cooling options exist with an air-to-water heat pump?

A separate air conditioning system. This applies to any heating type in a typical single-family home (unless you are heating directly with air conditioning split units).

pagoni2020 schrieb:

By the way, what effective cooling options are there with an air-to-water heat pump?

"Effective" is a matter of interpretation, and I never claimed otherwise. In principle, this function exists, and even if the cooling capacity can’t be compared to an air conditioner, I would strongly argue that it is at least better than with a gas heating system 🙂 Many users are satisfied with the cooling performance of the heat pump, especially in combination with a cooling coil unit (where we come back to the importance of proper system design according to the intended use). For example, we are installing an air conditioner ourselves because I’m not very confident in the cooling capacity—but the technical options are available. I don’t want to create a divisive debate here. As you said yourself, the application is crucial and should be the main factor when choosing the heating system (and many other decisions in building a house).

Nowadays, air-to-water heat pumps are simply the standard choice. Whether that’s always the smartest decision is another question. Most home builders have little knowledge and just trust what the supposed expert recommends. But that’s always the case. There was a time when oil heating was the new “hot mess,” and wood stoves suddenly went out of fashion. That wouldn’t have been necessary either, since there’s plenty of wood available here for heating.

Your last post really hits the core of the whole issue: You have to be clear with yourself about what you want and stand firm with those requirements during construction, even if your wishes sometimes go against the mainstream. But that requires a willingness to engage with the topic. Many builders simply don’t seem to want that. I know plenty of friends who built homes and couldn’t even say whether they used sand-lime bricks or Poroton.

Strahleman schrieb:

"Works well" is a matter of interpretation, and I never said it like that.

I know, I didn’t understand it that way either!
I have often read and heard about this topic before and gathered that this hope was sometimes the final deciding factor for choosing a heating system, and that people may have expected too much in terms of cooling as well.

Strahleman schrieb:

I’m not trying to create any opposition here.

I didn’t suspect that either.

Strahleman schrieb:

Nowadays, heat pump systems with air-to-water technology are generally the standard. Whether that is always the smartest choice is another question.

That’s what I mean. Sometimes it can be the right choice, but maybe less often than assumed.

Strahleman schrieb:

Most builders have no clue about this and simply trust what the supposed expert says. But that’s always the case. There was a time when oil heating was the new “hot stuff” and wood stoves suddenly went out of fashion. That wouldn’t have been necessary, especially since there’s plenty of wood available here for heating.

That was the case with my first build in 1990; my friend was a heating engineer and he decided what went in. Considering (although it’s hard to imagine) that back then there was basically no internet or smartphones, that was understandably the decisive factor. If he had recommended wood heating back then, that’s what we would have used. When it got cold, I’d call him and he’d turn the heat back on immediately… what’s the saying nowadays? 24/7 plus lunch break! By the way, this is my primary requirement for a heating system: it must work reliably, not bother me, and if necessary, I want to be able to fix issues myself or have the problem be easy to solve. Personally, I actually dislike the slow response of underfloor heating, but that’s just my own issue.

Strahleman schrieb:

You have to be clear about what you want for yourself and stand firm on those requirements during construction, even if it means going against the mainstream. But that requires a willingness to engage with the subject matter.

Exactly!

Strahleman schrieb:

I know plenty of friends who built houses and couldn’t even tell you whether they built with sand-lime bricks or Poroton.

I find the layperson debates here about the pros and cons of certain bricks sometimes a bit over the top.
If people are happy living that way, I honestly think that’s great. I have a good friend who built his house 30 years ago and wouldn’t know either. He never complained and was always satisfied… truly enviable!
At least when it comes to heating, I’m somewhat similar; I fought my way through all the available systems for our build and quickly realized that a heat pump wouldn’t be the right fit for me. If it were, it would probably have been a ground-source system.