Central heating without diesel/gas in Cyprus...

[Jim B]

The floor never gets that hot to cause sweating, unlike radiators, it's just comfortably warm.
We run our boiler for a couple of hours and then use the pumps to circulate the heated water and that keeps the whole house warm all day.

Jim

[cyprusmax47]

A 'passive' (energy efficient) house would never advocate wall radiators today - but underfloor heating every time

Have you ever lived in a house with underfloor heating? If so, I hope you don't suffer from hyperhidrosis.

In my last house in Germany my architects designed 1985 underfloor heating all over the place, warm water supply by 20 solar panels on the roof and as a backup pellet furnace. The floor temperature in the bathroom was always 10c higher than the rest of the house with 28c. Never experienced unpleasant feeling. Also in my last house in Cyprus I had underfloor heating installed, but only in the master bathroom with jacuzzi which was very comfortable in winter, also supplied by 12 solar panels on the roof and fire place backup.

Max

[trevnhil]

We have radiators on the wall and are very happy with the system..

[J B]

If so, I hope you don't suffer from hyperhidrosis.

Hyperhidrosis, or excessive sweating, is a common disorder which produces a lot of unhappiness. An estimated 2%-3% of Americans suffer from excessive sweating of the underarms (axillary hyperhidrosis) or of the palms and soles of the feet (palmoplantar hyperhidrosis).

We've lived in our UK 'under floor heated' house for the past 12 years and never heard the word before.

Never too old to learn!!!

[cyprusmax47]

The floor never gets that hot to cause sweating, unlike radiators, it's just comfortably warm.
We run our boiler for a couple of hours and then use the pumps to circulate the heated water and that keeps the whole house warm all day.

Jim

Best experience I had with extra thick (4 cm) Italian terra-cotta floor tiles acting as a buffer. They were holding the warmth for many hours after the heating was switched off. Very different to marble which gets cold much faster.

Max

[robf]

We have a Genvex air system in the UK, which includes heat recovery via a heat pump. The air ducts were installed when we had the house updated.
If I was starting from scratch in Cyprus I would install this system. It ensures heated fresh air throughout the house in the winter and cooled air in the summer https://www.genvex.com/en/products/air- ... -heat-pump The house needs to be well insulated. The only problem in the UK is when the temp goes below 6c the pump becomes inefficient.
One advantage of retro fitting an air to water heat pump in cyprus, is that in the summer you could reverse the system and have cool floors, but you would need to check with the installers.

[trevnhil]

One of the main problems is that most, or at least many Cypriot properties have a single brick wall and a flat concrete roof.. It is difficult to insulate these Homes..

[Jimgward]

One of the main problems is that most, or at least many Cypriot properties have a single brick wall and a flat concrete roof.. It is difficult to insulate these Homes..

Correct. The tiled brick single wall construction is no good. ~I remember seeing houses being built in Coral Bay across from the bowling green and couldn’t believe the shoddy workmanship from one of the largest builders. Poor quality everything. Thrown up.

Tradiitonal village houses are far better equipped for the climate, however a few Cypriots have told me that 30 years ago, they didn’t need air-con or central heating in Cyprus - but do now for the hottest and coldest times. Global weather changes.

[Jim B]

There are companies that can retrofit exterior insulation but they're not cheap. An average sized 3 bedroom villa costs about €15,000 to do.

Jim

[cyprusmax47]

Found a nice diagram on a German website which explains very simple the advantage how a heat pump reduces energy costs..



75% environmental energy + 25% operating power using hot-water heat pump is producing 100% hot water.

Max

[Jimgward]

Max, I always thought the best heat pumps were about 50% efficient.... German engineering?

[cyprusmax47]

German advertising

Max

[cyprusmax47]

Max, I always thought the best heat pumps were about 50% efficient.... German engineering?

They are talking in this ad about yearly yields: winner on the market are heat pumps with COP ca 5! For these ones you would get subsidy in Germany of 2000 Euro and low interest loans from KfW bank....From 2025 no diesel/gas central heating is allowed in Germany anymore...

For heat pumps, this ratio is expressed by the annual work figure. The annual work figure is determined by measurements over a period of one year for a specific heat pump. The advantage: Project-dependent factors such as location and heating limit temperature are also included. All heat pumps installed by us reach a working volume of at least 3.5.

Another important measure of the energy efficiency of a heat pump is its COP value. COP stands for "Coefficient of Performance" and roughly means efficiency coefficient. The COP value is often called the coefficient of performance. In contrast to the annual work count, the current efficiency is measured under standardized conditions and the heat output in kilowatts is compared to the power consumption of the heat pump unit. Heat pumps achieve very good COP values ​​compared to conventional heating systems.

Max

[Devil]

Max, I always thought the best heat pumps were about 50% efficient.... German engineering?

I'm with Max on this one. A COP of 3.5 is common today, 4 state of the art. A domestic fridge or freezer gives about twice as much 'coolth' as it consumes, reflected to the heat from the coils at the back. For a combined fridge-freezer count more on a COP of 1.5-1.8, as efficiency is lost by performing two independent functions from a single compressor. Commercial and industrial cooling is much more efficient.

When I was a kid, about 1937, my parents bought a fridge (home-made ice cream, yummy) using sulfur dioxide as refrigerant (so I found out later when it was taken out of service and I tried to recover the motor and belt-driven compressor for air!!! ). I doubt whether it would have had a COP much greater than 1, as its coils, at the back, were massive compared with modern ones.

[harveywinning]

Can anyone recommend a company who supplies/installs air heat pumps in Cyprus?

[cyprusmax47]

Can anyone recommend a company who supplies/installs air heat pumps in Cyprus?

One of the leading companies to install heat pumps for domestic and large hotels can be found in PL directory..

https://www.paphoslife.com/directory/entry/greenair

Max