ᐅ Which Heating System Is Best for a New Build (Prefab House)
Created on: 8 Nov 2016 13:05
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BFResident
Hello dear community,
my wife and I want to take the plunge into the adventure of building a house. We have decided on the prefabricated house option. The house should have between 130 and 150 square meters (1400 and 1600 square feet) of living space. We are at the very beginning; nothing is finalized yet, no building plot, etc. The entire new development area in the town will only be developed next year.
However, we want to benefit from others’ experiences as early as possible, hence this post.
Among many other things to consider, I think the heating system is one of the most important points. Almost all prefab house providers advertise the KfW40 or 40+ standard house with an air-to-air heat pump and controlled ventilation with heat recovery (fresh air heat technology). But I am also considering the KfW55 option with a pellet heating system combined with a hydronic wood-burning stove in the living room and a buffer tank. I still have no idea about the costs.
At the moment, our main question is: Is an air-to-air heat pump sufficient for the Black Forest climate at all? How about efficiency? Do you have experience with controlled ventilation and indoor climate? I think there is a wealth of experience here.
I have already read some posts on similar questions but please don’t be offended if I am looking for individual answers.
Thanks in advance for reading and responding! Feel free to ask if you have any questions.
my wife and I want to take the plunge into the adventure of building a house. We have decided on the prefabricated house option. The house should have between 130 and 150 square meters (1400 and 1600 square feet) of living space. We are at the very beginning; nothing is finalized yet, no building plot, etc. The entire new development area in the town will only be developed next year.
However, we want to benefit from others’ experiences as early as possible, hence this post.
Among many other things to consider, I think the heating system is one of the most important points. Almost all prefab house providers advertise the KfW40 or 40+ standard house with an air-to-air heat pump and controlled ventilation with heat recovery (fresh air heat technology). But I am also considering the KfW55 option with a pellet heating system combined with a hydronic wood-burning stove in the living room and a buffer tank. I still have no idea about the costs.
At the moment, our main question is: Is an air-to-air heat pump sufficient for the Black Forest climate at all? How about efficiency? Do you have experience with controlled ventilation and indoor climate? I think there is a wealth of experience here.
I have already read some posts on similar questions but please don’t be offended if I am looking for individual answers.
Thanks in advance for reading and responding! Feel free to ask if you have any questions.
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BFResident8 Nov 2016 19:12Michael, please feel free to join in; discussions are always welcome. We are also interested in what others in the same situation think.
@BeHaElJa: How is the climate for you on average throughout the year? More cold days or generally warmer? How does your heating system perform in winter—are you getting the heat you need?
@BeHaElJa: How is the climate for you on average throughout the year? More cold days or generally warmer? How does your heating system perform in winter—are you getting the heat you need?
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BFResident8 Nov 2016 20:02FHW6Neu schrieb:
Last week, we signed the purchase contract for our house. All five townhouse providers had planned an air-to-water heat pump. In the end, we bought a KfW 40+ house with photovoltaic panels, controlled ventilation with heat recovery, and no basement from a smaller builder specializing in solid wood construction in Upper Swabia. Their overall concept convinced us completely – also in terms of price. The heating system will use geothermal probes and a corresponding heat pump without an additional electric heating element. Air-to-air or air-to-water heat pumps have the lowest efficiency where the heating demand is highest, and the forum shows very mixed experiences regarding energy consumption and COP. I wouldn’t consider a system without auxiliary heating, especially not in cold climates. What about the efficiency of these geothermal probes? Is it less than deep geothermal drilling but better than an air-to-water heat pump?
We are installing three baskets in the garden, which will heat approximately 270 m² (2,900 sq ft) and produce the domestic hot water. The baskets are placed about 3.5 m (11.5 ft) deep and are around 2 m (6.5 ft) high, thus below the frost line. The coefficient of performance (COP) is definitely higher than with an air-to-water heat pump.
The climate is typical of the North German lowlands—unspectacular... I sincerely hope the heating system provides enough warmth during the day; otherwise, it would have been incorrectly sized.
@FHW6Neu: How much are you paying for the house then? Although that’s somewhat irrelevant and not really helpful—I was just curious about the cost of the baskets.
@FHW6Neu: How much are you paying for the house then? Although that’s somewhat irrelevant and not really helpful—I was just curious about the cost of the baskets.
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