In Rostock, in the far north of Germany, an exceptional experiment was initiated. Building energy consultant Günter Oldigs, who concentrates on the energy efficiency of buildings for more than 20 years now, set himself an ambitious goal – to switch to a completely renewable heat supply for his own house. As an experienced player in the energy game, Mr. Oldigs took it upon himself to plan and implement a fully geothermal-based heating system. In order to ensure a full-proof system at minimal hassle, Thermaflex’ simple, yet reliable plug & play distribution system could accommodate.
The domestic heat pump experiment
Rostock, Germany
1 Month
51 % CO2 are saved
75 % of end energy demand reduced reduced what results in 49 % total energy savings
safeguarded by a 100 % reliable supply since project completion
Energy-efficient building at its finest
Goals
To achieve optimal efficiency, a well-insulated system flow and return system was crucial. Insulating the return flow of a ground-sourced heat pump can already reduce heat loss up to 77%.
Mr. Oldigs, who breathe a passion for smart, and sustainable energy solutions, quickly opted to secure his heat distribution with Flexalen. The bottom-line of this self-experiment was sustainable efficiency, leading to characterize also the materials used for this project. The premise of this project was to limit the CO2-emissions caused by the oil-based energy supply in combination with resource protection through the transition to renewable energy.
Project Process
The heat supply of this low-energy home, which was built in 1994, would switch from a fossil fuel oil-based-heating system to an air-water pump in September 2014. The 110m² living space of is completely facilitated with floor heating. Previously, the house was supplied by an oil-fired low-temperature boiler with a 15 kW capacity. The potable warm water was supplied from a domestic hot water storage of 200 litres. Nowadays, an air-water heat pump with 9kW does the same job. To create a connection from the heat pump to the heating system of the house, an integrated solution using our pre-insulated Flexalen plug & play set was found.
Results
The transition of the heat supply to renewable sources with an air-water heat pump demonstrated impressive results, and shows how anyone can make the switch while saving significant costs on their energy bill.
The connection of the heatpump was realized with our Flexalen 600 Plug & Play set. The transition from the old heat supply to a renewable-based one with the installation of a Flexalen system went smoothly, and ended in great enthusiasm by all contributing parties.
”The Flexalen 600 Plug & Play Set is especially recommendable for such applications, as the pipe comes with all the accessories in one handy carton. I’m looking forward to further projects of this kind with Flexalen 600 from Thermaflex."
Günter OldigsGEBGO
This far-reaching impact on people, planet, and prosperity further carried Mister Oldigs to extend his renewable energy supply with the installation of a photovoltaic system in 2015. As a result, the primary energy savings are at 70% now, and his total CO2-emissions cut by 71%. This makes this self-experiment an absolute frontrunner in low-scale energy-efficient building.
The development of the heating energy consumption, the annual COP as well as the efficient integration of the photovoltaic system can be tracked on the Website of GEBGO.
“If you were to ask me if the environmental consciousness plays a significant role within the decision making process for the implementation of a heat pump, I would fully agree on that! As a building energy consultant, I wanted to set an example. Thus I decided for the installation of an air-water heat pump, as there was not enough space for a ground collector. The heat pump is working perfectly, free of any maintenance, and very silent since implementation.”
Günter OldigsGEBGO
Additional Info
Organisations
GEBGO (building energy consultant)
Multitherm Montage GmbH / Bentwisch (heatpump installation)
