Heat pump consumption: how much will I save on my gas bill?
You’ve probably heard it before: the heat pump reduces your gas consumption considerably, which means you have less money to spend on gas. But what exactly about the energy bill? It is indeed true that when you have a (hybrid) heat pump installed you will use more energy, and the amount depends on what kind of heat pump you eventually choose. Adlår answers all your questions regarding the consumption of a heat pump, what exactly a COP value means and what the efficiency of a heat pump is. Read on!
What does a heat pump actually consume energy for?
To heat your home, your heat pump needs energy. Simply put, the heat pump needs to be able to heat the air or water coming into the pump and this process requires energy. The amount of power needed depends on which heat pump you have and what needs to be heated.
Before you can do a calculation on this, you need to know what the COP value and SCOP value mean and how to find out these values.
What is the difference between the COP and SCOP values of a heat pump?
The COP, or Coefficient Of Performance, indicates the efficiency of a heat pump or other appliance. The higher the COP value, the higher the efficiency and the more economical the appliance is.
The formula for determining COP is simple:
Example COP value calculation
A heat pump that produces 4 kW of heat with just 1 kW of electricity:
4 kW / 1 kW = COP value: 4
The SCOP value stands for Seasonal Coefficient of Performance and is the average COP viewed over a year, taking into account the different seasons. So this looks specifically at your region, averaging the COP values in your area over an entire year.
Do you live in the Haarlem region, for example? The SCOP then indicates what the COP is when producing, say, 30°C water, 35°C, 40°C, 45°C, etc so you can easily compare whether the heat pump you have your eye on is above or below average.
Heat pump efficiency vs. boiler
The average COP value should be between 4 and 6. So this means that when you lose 1 kW of energy you get 4 to 6 kW of heat in return. This is an efficiency of 400% to 600%!
When we look at a central heating boiler, the efficiency is at 90% to 100%. This efficiency is a lot lower because the central heating boiler has to get the energy from the gas, where a heat pump gets it from the air or water. The process of a heat pump simply takes a lot less energy, making the efficiency much higher! Even though the efficiency is a lot higher, it does mean that you will use more energy.
Power consumption by type of heat pump
Here you will find an overview for each type of heat pump what the energy consumption could be. Important: these are average consumption figures. It varies from house to house, so consumption can be more or less, and the COP value of your heat pump can also have an influence on this!
*It takes into account €0.40 per kW assumed to be below the price cap.
| Type of heat pump | Average kW per year | Estimated energy costs per year* |
|---|---|---|
| Hybrid heat pump (excl. boiler) | 1.600 | €640,- |
| Air-water heat pump | 3.200 | €1.280,- |
| Water-water heat pump | 2.650 | €1.060,- |
| Ground-water heat pump | 2.550 | €1.020,- |
Heat pump consumption new construction vs existing construction
Unfortunately, it is well established that new-build homes are more efficient with a heat pump. This is because new-build homes are better insulated than existing homes that are more than 20 years old, for example. It is also true that new-build homes have solar panels that generate their own electricity. As a result, you often have little or no gas and energy costs with a newly built house.
With an existing home, we will find monthly costs a bit higher. For example, do you have a hybrid heat pump and consume (as shown in the table above) 1,600 kW per year? Then your monthly charges for a heat pump will come to €54.
Want to know more about costs? Read our article on all the costs of a hybrid heat pump!
Seasonal consumption: heat pump consumption up in winter
The heat pump has to work a bit harder in winter than in summer. In summer, you don’t need energy to heat your home because this can be done by the sun, but unfortunately it is a lot colder outside in winter. Therefore, you need the heat pump more to heat your home, increasing its consumption. In the table above, you can see the consumption per year, with most of it occurring in the autumn and winter months.
COP value Aurora II: 5
When you choose an Aurora || the COP value is around 5, with the SCOP value being around 4.8. So a perfect choice as your new heat pump! Want to know more about the Aurora ||? Our specialists will gladly answer all your questions. Fill in the question form and we will contact you soon.