UK Needs To Switch Heating Methods

The UK needs to focus on moving away from gas boilers to heat our homes and take a hybrid approach if we are to hit our emission reduction targets a new report has suggested.

According to the report from the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), the government needs to focus on putting the infrastructure for hydrogen in place to enable us to switch to this energy source for our heating needs.

However, with little action being taken in this area the committee warned that we could fall behind. One suggestion from the organisation is to use a hybrid system in the meantime, which involves installing heat pumps in homes.

Air source and ground source heat pumps are the preferred option at present, according to the CCC, noting that gas boilers could be used as a backup until they are able to be replaced by hydrogen models.

New Scientist revealed that around 10 million homes in the UK need to install these kinds of systems by 2035 if we are to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Speaking to the Guardian, Chris Stark, chief executive of the CCC, said that he now had confidence that using heat pumps as a hybrid measure to ease the transition to hydrogen boilers is the right way to go.

He stressed that the government needs to act now to set out a plan for decarbonising the country’s heating systems.

The report from the CCC explained that it will be cheaper and better to take action sooner, rather than to give in to “a strong temptation politically to ‘kick the can down the road’ by sticking with natural gas for longer”.

If you’re interested in switching to a heat pump, contact us to find out how our commercial heat pump installers can help.