The first Clivet EDGE PRO installation in the UK is demonstrating the potential for heat pumps in rural retrofits, replacing a 40kW LPG boiler with a correctly specified 16kW R290 heat pump in a Lincolnshire home.
The installation has taken place at Gorse Cottage near Boston, the home of Simon Wardle and Diane Saunders of Ultimate Renewables Supplies, Clivet’s sole UK distributor.
Parts of Gorse Cottage date back to 1844, with several later extensions creating a five-bedroom, multi-generational property incorporating a two-bedroom annex.
Previously heated by LPG, the property had a 40kW boiler and large LPG storage tank. Detailed room-by-room calculations established an actual design heat loss of 14.58kW, enabling the system to be correctly specified with a 16kW Clivet EDGE PRO.
The new Clivet EDGE PRO is an R290 reversible air-to-water monobloc heat pump designed for high-performance residential applications. The company says the unit is particularly suited to retrofit.
Using natural R290 refrigerant, EDGE PRO can produce water temperatures of up to 80°C, achieves A+++ heating efficiency at 35°C, and can operate in outdoor temperatures down to -25°C.
Despite the age and complexity of the property, the retrofit did not require wholesale replacement of its heating emitters. Using the Minimal Disrupt approach, only three of the property’s 19 radiators needed changing.
The complete installation also incorporates a Clivet Adia Zero Disrupt, a 300-litre Supercoil cylinder and whole-house booster pump. The equipment is housed in a purpose-built insulated external plant room.
As an eligible off-gas-grid property moving from LPG to a heat pump, the project also benefited from the enhanced £9,000 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant.
Image: Clivet
