With the capital cost barrier removed for the individual householder and funding available for landlords in this sector, more installations can be carried out and monitored. However, a barrier remains with uncertainty over the technology: confidence in heat pump technology is important as it potentially offers the greatest carbon saving opportunities for future (Pendleton & Viitanen, 2011). Therefore, a substantial degree of trust and understanding of the technology is required if people are to adopt and use heat pumps in their homes, at the levels required for carbon reduction targets.
In a review by the Institute for Public Policy Research, Pendleton & Viitanen (2011) reported that more needs to be learned about the performance of heat pumps through more extensive trials (Pendleton & Viitanen, 2011) This indicates a level of immaturity in the market and a need for research to focus on heat pump
installations, for successful wider implementation in future. Uptake of renewable heat technologies in households might realistically be expected to accelerate in the
62 2020s (Skea, 2012) efforts should, therefore, be placed now on better
understanding heat pump installations in the UK, to increase the success of implementation at a greater rate in the near future. The social housing sector proffers the opportunity to carry out such extensive trials.
Much research to date has concerned heat pump performance purely from a technical perspective. The Energy Saving Trust recently conducted the first large- scale field study of UK heat pump installations that included user experience. The study monitored technical performance as well as customer behaviour, with the aim of informing industry stakeholders of improvements that could be made to
installations (Energy Saving Trust, 2010). This project however incorporated a diverse sample, including privately owned properties and social housing dwellings, installations in new-build properties and retrofitted into existing properties (Energy Saving Trust, 2010). As previously suggested, there are differences between private homeowners and social housing tenants and, furthermore, there are differing issues associated with new-build and retrofit projects, which are not considered in this field study.
In the report findings, from the Energy Saving Trust’s UK heat pump field trial, outcomes indicate that, firstly, customer behaviour is a variable that was shown to impact performance. These behaviours and how they affect heat pumps are not explained however. Secondly, the report states that ‘many householders said that they had difficulties understanding the instructions for operating their heat pump. This highlights a need for clearer and simpler customer advice’ (Energy Saving Trust, 2010). This highlights a clear need for further work in the field of renewable
technology to develop a better understanding of installations and usage.
Further work is additionally required as although research has identified a need for better information there is no support given in terms of what this advice should be, or how it should be presented to customers. A conclusion of the field study is that further investigation is needed, on an installation-by-installation basis, to record what has been done wrong or what has been done well and what could be done better, to improve future installations. This doctoral research is investigating cases
63 of heat pump installations in the UK social housing sector, to obtain information about the installation processes in place and various experiences of those processes. The findings from this will provide a rich understanding of the lessons that have been learned from existing projects, to disseminate into future projects.
As outlined through the descriptions in section 2.3.3 of this literature review, there are two main types of heat pumps being installed in homes: air-source and ground- source heat pumps. It is explained that there are differences between the two types of systems in terms of how they operate mechanically, their components, the scale of the installation infrastructure, and the energy source being converted to provide heat. However, this research is focused upon the service provided to tenants by landlords to install heat pumps in their homes. Considering this, other information in this review about the heat pump technology and installations also indicates there are substantial similarities between the two systems, key to the experience of an installation for tenants.
To install a heat pump, a tenant must be consulted with and provided information; this is true regardless of the type of system. The way in which the heating would be experienced in the home and the way in which the heating level should be
controlled is the same for both types of heat pumps; they operate at lower
temperatures for longer periods of time, whether the energy source is from the air or ground. The education around this for tenants to understand the operation of the heating is expected to be very similar.
During an installation process, tenants will interact with the landlord and those people carrying out the installation and these service provision aspects are the same for both types of system. Although there are differences between the systems in terms of the equipment that is installed and where it is located, a level of disruption would be inevitable for tenants in their homes and this is a key part of the service to be managed. The post-installation maintenance and support service would be the same for both the types of system as far as the tenant is concerned, in terms of communication and interactions with their landlord and any other maintenance stakeholders.
64 For these reasons, it is valid to investigate air-source and ground-source heat
pumps together in this research at a service provision level. This is because, as is made evident above, similarities lie within the service provision aspects which are the focus of this research; the differences are largely technical concerns. As such, the research samples for empirical studies can combine the two types of systems.