RHI HAS LAUNCHED!

Earn £3,690 per year for heating your own home

After months of speculating and lengthy delays, the domestic RHI has launched in the UK TODAY, WHOOPIE - rewarding home-owners choosing to heat their homes with renewable technology with high tariff payments. This is great news for eco-green buffs as they will be rolling in money, waving their cash around like they just don't care!

What is RHI?

The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is the world’s first long-term financial support programme for renewable heat.

The RHI pays participants of the scheme that generate and use renewable energy to heat their buildings. By increasing the generation of heat from renewable energy sources (instead of fossil fuels), the RHI helps the UK reduce greenhouse gas emissions and meet targets for reducing the effects of climate change.

Similar to the popular Feed-in-Tariff enjoyed by PV solar panels, the RHI will pay people for generating their own heat energy AND they get to heat their home efficiently - slashing their heating bills dramatically! I cannot convey the level of excitement I am currently in.

Speculations of an imminent launch rose considerably when the minister for the Department of Energy and Climate Change, Greg Barker has announced via Twitter:
"Excellent progress on domestic RHI. All set now for launch by Easter."
This is excellent news for those that already have, or who are considering RHI approved renewable heating, as they will see annual earnings and savings (payable for 7 years) of:
- £3,690 for ground heat pumps
- £3,390 for biomass boilers
- £1,280 for air source heat pumps
- £600 for solar thermal systems

It's worth noting that currently, the hybrid solar panels (PV-T) that generate both electrivity AND hot water are not eligible for the RHI tariff.

Always check your system will be RHI eligible and use an MCS accredited installer.

Finally the government have got something right! The amazing thing about it is you will be independent, you won't have to rely on those energy providers with sky-rocketing prices and you will be paid for doing it!  Just think of what you could do with a couple of grand left over at the end of the year..

Your Air and Ground Source Heat Pump Questions answered

To help homeowners control their energy bills even further, or 'go green', we've designed Heat Pump Quoter.

Air and Ground Source Heat Pumps are an alternative renewable energy to solar or wind, and can power your hot water as well as your heating, via underfloor heating, hot air convection or even radiators.

Unlike some renewable energy sources, Heat Pumps are not reliant on wind or sunshine to operate, so you can make the most of this energy efficient, renewable heat source, 24 hours a day, all year around.

Our newest 'Quoter website can offer you an instant online heat pump quote, without the need for salesmen to call on you.

To find out how Heat Pumps work, how suitable they may be for your home and what Government incentives are currently available, read more below...

How do Heat Pumps work?

Imagine a fridge working in reverse - taking the outside temperature of the air or ground and extracting the heat, compressing that heat and then passing it into your home to heat your hot water, underfloor heating, radiator or warm air convection system and that's the science behind Air and Ground Source Heat Pumps.

Air Source Heat Pumps are a small unit (much like a modern air-conditioning unit in size and shape), which fixes to the ground or wall adjacent to the property to be heated.

Ground Source Heat Pumps use heat taken from the ground and involve a series of looped fluid filled tubing buried in trenches within your garden. Because of the trench digging and pipe laying, these systems cost more to install.

Heat Pumps work at generally lower temperatures to more traditional fossil fuel heating so it's important, to make the most of your system, that your home is reasonably insulated before installation begins. What's more, they don't rely on wind or sunshine to function.

How do I get my money back? It's renewable energy right?

Absolutely right. Heat Pumps are a renewable heat source - the kind to be included in the Governments proposed Renewable Heat Incentives which are due to start Autumn 2012 and already included in the Governments current *Renewable Heat Premium Payment scheme.

The tariffs - the money the Government will pay you - will work similarly to the current solar panel feed in tariffs, but nobody knows the exact details yet.

The Government are currently offering a *Renewable Heat Premium Payment scheme to encourage homeowners to install renewable heat sources onto their homes.

The Government are making these one-off payments, to the tune of £1250 for Ground Source systems and £850 for Air Source systems to homeowners, to help them cover the cost of installing these systems. These installation incentives are set to run until 31st march 2012.

What's so green about Heat Pumps?

Sure, Heat Pumps use electricity to run, but the clever bit is they use far less that the energy they output.

The energy is called renewable because the heat is taken from the surrounding air / ground rather than artificially generated through the burning of a fossil fuel.

This means that the CO2 emissions are low compared to an equivalent fossil fuel usage.

What can a Heat Pump heat?

Heat Pumps extract heat from their surroundings, compress it and apply it to a fluid which is then passed into your home. This hot fluid can be used to:

• Heat your emersion tank
• Power your underfloor heating
• Heat specially designed radiators in your home
• Power hot air convection heaters.

The systems are responsive and designed to work with thermostats so you can control the heat / water temperature.

Because of that overall lower heat output, if you're using your Heat Pump to power your hot water, you're installers will make sure you have an immersion heater fitted which will be timed to come on once a week for an hour or two, to superheat the water in your tank and kill off any bacteria.

The lower heat output also means you may find it more comfortable to leave the systems on for longer periods.

Specially designed radiators?

Yes, normal 'gas fired' central heating radiators aren't usually large enough to provide the surface area needed for the lower temperature water to effectively transfer enough heat to the radiator to 'radiate' and heat the room.

It may be you decide on a duel system - keeping your existing heating / hot water system but supplementing its heat with your Heat Pump. That will still lower your usual energy bills.

Is my home suitable?

Most properties will be suitable for either a ground or air heat pump system. There's even a water pump system that could draw heat from say a large pond or lake.

Properties which will benefit the most include those that aren't on Mains Gas and use either Oil, LPG or other solid fuel for heating and hot water.

Properties that use storage heaters will also see the same benefits.

Even on properties with gas fired central heating will make a modest return (not including any future tariffs), by preheating hot water tanks etc or replacing the heating source on underfloor heating systems.

Will I need a new immersion tank?

That's a question for your preferred installers when they're conducting their quote survey.

Servicing and maintenance?

Heat pump technology has been around longer than you think. The units themselves require little maintenance other than an annual health check (like a regular gas boiler) and for an Air Source Pump, making sure the area around the pump is free from leaf debris etc.

How big a system will I need?

That depends on how dependent you want to be on its output from totally dependent to treating the system as an auxiliary system. The installation companies will take your wishes along with the size and type of your home and how many of you live within the property, into consideration when conducting their survey prior to quotation.

In conclusion…

• Heap Pumps use minimal energy
• Produce a steady, reliable renewable heat and hot water source for your home
• Aren't reliant on wind or sunshine
• Work all year round - 24/7
• Government incentives towards installation costs of such systems - up to £1250*
• Government expected to launch its Renewable Heat Incentive tariff scheme October 2012
• You could earn a regular payment for the renewable heat you produce.
• Lower your energy bills
• Reduce your homes CO2 Emissions

*Renewable Heat Premium Payments (Governments one-off payments towards your installation costs) are subject to certain criteria. You can find more information on the Energy Saving Trust's website here.

Microgeneration Certificatation Scheme see the positives for smaller installers

"think positive"

The MCS scheme community responded more positively than others in the solar industry, to the weeks earlier news of the feed-in tariff cuts.

In particular, the MCS community see's the cuts as an opportunity for smaller solar installers to gain business as larger 'free-installation' companies cut back on investment and installations.

They also reckon falling installation costs - one of the reasons cited by the Government for feeling able to reduce the tariffs without damaging the number of installations to greatly - will open up the technology to more homeowners on a paid installation basis as opposed to those who were only able, previously, to consider a free installation contract.

The Green Deal will also stimulate solar installations when it starts next year and the Renewable Heat Incentives have also just been given the go-ahead, having cleared a European hurdle earlier this week.

Sounds like plenty of work for everyone doesn't it?

photo credit: sh4rp_i

*To find your nearest MCS accredited solar installer, use Solar Panel Quoter.co.uk.

Green doom as RHI receives 'Euro setback

RHI's tug of war

First spotted in The Guardian, was this story that the Government's Renewable Heat Incentives (RHI) have been "pulled at the last minute".

The blame is being laid at the feet of Europe - the report goes on to say - as the European Commission, unhappy with the large tariff for Bio-mass generated heat, is believed to have said they're happy for the RHI to go ahead, subject to the Bio-mass tariff being reduced.

The Guardian is quite right - not only is it a severe financial setback for all those that have already invested in renewable heating sources, but the setback to the launch of the RHI could knock confidence in the UK's green industry as a whole.

The Government hope to have the RHI scheme back on track, but admit a delay of around 2 months may now ensue, whilst proposals are re-written and voted on.

At least those that have already installed renewable heat sources will be saving on their energy bills - small comfort to those that have invested heavily and were hoping to see a decent return on that investment, via the RHI tariff payments.

For larger installations, there's going to be a lot of worried investors and I suspect a lot of installation projects that were due to start may be put back, whilst the tariff situation, and indeed, the amounts the tariffs will actually pay out, are decided.

Read The Guardian's full report here.

photo credit: josh james

Renewable Heat Incentives (RHI) and tariff details announced

Finally, the details of the much anticipated Renewable Heat Incentive scheme and tariffs have been announced by Energy Secretary Chris Huhne.

We'll be back tomorrow with our pick of the best bits.

photo credit: julian burgess

Why the Feed-in Tariff's and Renewable Heat Incentives must go on

Good Energy's Commercial Director - Chris Welby - wrote a very reasonable argument for the Government to continue the present Feed-in Tariff system and continue with plans to launch the Renewable Heat Incentive's scheme.

His 3 main points are that:

1) There is no Government money in the FiT and there does not need to be any Government money in the RHI.

2) The Schemes do not reward the rich at the expense of the poor.

3) Decentralised energy is key to energy security.

Some good points here Chris - it's well worth 10 minutes of your time checking it out. Click here to read it.

photo credit: headexplodie

Renewable Energy Quotes - online prices for solar panel installation

Surely one of the most popular renewable energy quotes sought by homeowners is for solar panel installation on a home or business.

Aided by the recent Feed-in Tariffs scheme whereby those installing photovoltaic (electricity generating) solar panels can now get paid for the amount of energy they produce including any surplus they put back into the National Grid.

A similar scheme - Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is due to start in 2011 which will address solar hot water panels, ground source heat pumps etc.

Whilst there is conflicting stories from both sides on the real pay-back period for such installations and that 'pay-back' figure has been aided greatly by the new tariffs, as I was reading somewhere recently it's worth remembering that renewable energy 'does' have a payback period.

Unlike continuing to use existing energy suppliers where bills will only continue to rise.

It's important to choose a reputable company to handle your installation and a good place to start is Solar Panel Quoter. Start by entering your location details and the type of solar panel installation you're interested in and our clever website will try and give you an online price guide there and then.

Later, we'll give you the opportunity to see which companies local to you are offering the service you were interested in and let you read homeowner feedback from others who've used these companies - whether that was for just a quote or if they used them for the full solar panel installation.

Click here to start your solar panel enquiry.

Solar Panel Quter is part of the 'Quoter family of websites - we can offer you instant online home improvement quotes on everything from double glazing to fitted kitchens, loft and garage conversions to driveways and even garage doors, all from the comfort of your own home without the need for a salesman to call. All our 'Quoter sites will give you an instant online quote and our service can give you access to hundreds of homeowner comments and feedbacks on the companies local to you, to help you make an informed decision, before you let a salesman into your home.

Click here to visit the 'Quoter family of websites now.

photo credit: kevin dooley

Solar Hot Water Heating Panels - need a little incentive?

If you missed it earlier, then it's not only photovoltaic solar panel installations that should be able to qualify for the recently started feed-in tariffs.

For homeowners who install solar hot water heating panels, from April next year (2011), there will also be a renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme which will work in pretty much the same way as the feed-in tariffs with hopefully, homeowners being able to claim back part of their installation costs as well.

There's some debate at the moment as to if people who've already installed solar hot water heating panels will be able to claim - how far back installations will qualify etc but if you haven't already installed a solar hot water heating panel system on your home, then now be a very good time to start making enquiries.

Click here to read more about the RHI - Renewable Heat Incentive

One application of solar hot water heating panels is to use them to heat outdoor jacuzzi's.

photo credit: diluvi

Renewable Heat Incentives - How much will it pay you?

Ever since the RHI (Renewable Heat Incentives) were announced earlier this year with a planned introduction date of April 2011 - the feed-in tariffs for renewable electrical generation coming in just a few days now - I've been meaning to put together a handy 'what it means for you' guide.

But why waste energy when Cathy Debenham at YouGen has already posted such a fantastic piece that covers pretty much everything I was going to and then some besides.

Here's a clip of what's in store for you...

"Heat is the biggest use of energy in the UK. Just under half of the UK's CO2 emissions and 60% of domestic energy bills are used on heating space and water. Heat in the UK is currently supplied predominantly by fossil fuels - less than 1% comes from renewable sources. The proposed renewable heat incentive (RHI - also known as clean energy cashback) aims to change that. Its ambitious goal is that 12% of heat is generated renewably by 2020. The Government is currently consulting on the proposals, which (if it survives the election), will be the first such scheme in Europe. It should give a stable framework for the industry to expand and develop.The aim is to introduce the scheme from April 2011."

So rather than waffle on about RHI's - I'm going to send you over to Cathy's excellent post on the YouGen Blog - Click here.

Thank you Cathy - you've saved me a world of economy and trouble. Love the post to.

photo credit: tonyp1

Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) - What's that?

Goodness gracious me! Before Feed-in tariffs are announced, headlines have started circulating about Renewable Heat Incentives (RHI) for homeowners and micro-generators.

At present, Heat generated from renewable sources like solar hot water panels, ground source and air source heat pumps, biomass fuelled stoves etc accounts for only 0.6% of our total heat demand.

A figure that the Government needs to get up to 12% by 2020 to meet their binding EU renewable energy targets.

Unusually for such a scheme, it will be available across England, Scotland and Wales.

If your curiosity's got, visit the Department of Energy & Climate Change website for more information - click here.

The scheme's anticipated role-out date is 2011 - it will be interesting to see how that ties-in with feed-in tariffs which are aimed more at electrical generation through renewable sources and the savings homeowners can make on their everyday power usage.

The Energy Act (2008) paved the way for developing the scheme by addressing application issues like air quality and building regulations.

photo credit: zoetnet