Heatpumping Out Da Gas!

The UK's draughty, gas-heated private homes make a very substantial contribution to the country's 'greenhouse gas' emissions. The incoming Labour government is consequently keen to encourage a 'home upgrade revolution'. They hope to encourage home owners to replace their gas boilers with heat pumps. To do this, they have to counter the many myths linked to these devices. Heat pumps, work like a refrigerator in reverse. They extract heat from the air, using a refrigerant-style liquid, before using it to boil water in an internal tank. Heat pumps are expensive to buy and fit but they can, contrary to some claims, be appropriate for most homes. Heat pumps also work efficiently in countries with winters much colder than those encountered in the UK. They're much more efficient than gas boilers and the costs associated with running them (they use electricity) are similar (and falling) (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/sep/28/heat-pumps-future-hot-air-labour-home-upgrade). The UK has already reached a milestone, with 250,000 certified heat pumps being installed in its buildings. It needs, however, many more to be fitted. Generous financial subsidies for older buildings and specifying heat pumps for new-build housing, seem the best ways of achieving this.