Information about research study
Background
The heat pump lab is part the UK Energy Demand Observatory and Laboratory, which seeks to move us towards a fair and successful zero-carbon future by collecting and sharing energy use data for research and policy.
Heat pumps are likely to be an important technology for reducing carbon emissions in the UK. We therefore focus specifically on homes with heat pumps. We would like to understand the energy use of heat pumps, as well as how they are used by households, and whether households are happy with them. We would also like to understand how these things change over time.
What we are looking for
We are looking for 100 households with heat pumps to collect operational data for up to 5 years. We also interview households to find out about your experiences with your heat pump.
Detail about the data collection
There are four parts to the data collection; not every household will participate in every part. This depends on your preferences, our resources, and the sort of data we are able to collect from your heat pump, which in turn depends on its brand, how it is set up, etc.
- Every household in the study will have sensors installed to allow measurement of:
- Indoor air temperature and relative humidity in one room (measured every 10 minutes)
- Smart meter data from your whole home (measured every 1 minute)
- The indoor air temperature/humidity and smart meter data will be collected using the same device, which will be plugged into a plug socket and have around 1 metre of cable from the plug socket to the device.
Some households will have data collected from the heat pump’s “onboard monitoring”. This is information that the heat pump uses to turn itself on and off, change the temperature, switch from heating to hot water, and in some cases to display information to you. For example, you may have seen on your phone app or a display in your home that shows the room temperature or how much electricity your heat pump is using. This is what we refer to as “onboard monitoring”. If possible, we will be working with the heat pump manufacturer to retrieve the following variables from your heat pump: electricity consumption, heat generated, any temperatures it measures, as well as its operating condition (for example, whether it is heating hot water or radiators). The manufacturer is likely to be collecting this data anyway via the internet connection of your heat pump. With your consent, the manufacturer will give us access to their servers on which this data is stored.
Some households will have data collected from heat pump monitoring equipment put in specifically for this project. In the case where your heat pump does not collect its own onboard monitored data or this data is not comprehensive, with your consent, we will put in our own equipment to measure:
- Electricity consumption of the heat pump (measured every 2 minutes).
- We will measure this using a device clamped onto the cable which supplies electricity to your heat pump. The device will most likely be located near your fuse box and will be out of your way.
- Temperature of the water in four of the pipes in your heating system.
- We will measure this by strapping some temperature sensors onto your pipes. Again, this will be out of your way
The above two sets of data will be collected by the sensors described above and sent to a datalogger box which will be plugged into a plug socket in your home. The temperature data will be sent wirelessly to this box. The electricity data will be sent over a short length of cable. We will make sure this cable is strapped to the wall, out of your way.
- In some households we will carry out two interviews with one member of the household (please note that all interview participants must be at least 18 years old). The first interview will be carried out at the start of the project. One year later, we would like to carry out a second interview; this one will be conducted online via video call. Both interviews will focus on your experience of living with a heat pump – to what extent it meets your needs, how you use it, how you found the transition from your previous heating system. Each interview will last one hour and will be recorded.
What are the benefits of taking part?
Participants with monitoring installed in their home will receive £100 in shopping vouchers. Participant who do not need monitoring installed as their heat pump data can be retrieved remotely will receive £50 in shopping vouchers. More widely, the benefit of participating is to inform research which will shape heat pump deployment in other homes, through policy and heat pump system design.
Where will the data from my home be stored and how will it be used?
Your data will be securely stored by UCL and the University of Oxford for 5 years, and will only be accessible by the EDOL research team. Following this, name and address files will be deleted and heat pump data will be retained anonymously. This study has been registered with and approved by the UCL Data Protection Office to ensure that it meets the university’s standards on data protection. This research will be published in academic papers which are “open source” (meaning anyone can download and read them), and used in presentations. All data will be anonymised and no participants will be identifiable in any research outputs. If we have photographed the outside of your property we will check with you before using the photo in any outputs and we will edit out any house numbers or locational information such as street signs.
How do I sign up?
To register your interest please leave your details here and we will contact you. Note that you will not be formally signed up before you have signed a consent form.
What if I have questions?
Please feel free to get in touch at: heatpumplab@edol.ac.uk
