With around one-third of the total carbon emissions in the country coming from residential homes and typical gas-fuelled boilers, a change to better technologies is becoming not only necessary but imminent. And it seems the change has already started with the introduction of hydrogen boilers.
These are meant to be a replacement for the normal boilers, which run on natural gas, propane, or some other fossil fuel. Currently, around 80% of the homes in the UK rely on such boilers, and this is only making matters worse.
That’s why the government has started taking strict action to remedy the problem and shift the country towards more eco-friendly options such as hydrogen boilers. Here’s all that you need to know about it.
Everything You Need to Know About Hydrogen Fuelled Boilers
Considering the fact that most of us will be using hydrogen boilers in a couple of years, it is important to read up about it and prepare for it beforehand. This will make the transition from gas boilers to hydrogen boilers smooth and efficient.
Moreover, if you’re not sure what hydrogen boilers are, how they work, or even why you need them, look at our next blog[Hydrogen Boilers] to learn why. Besides that, here’s everything you need to know about hydrogen-fuelled boilers.
When Will Hydrogen Boilers be Available?
If you’re already aware of all the benefits of hydrogen boilers or know about the effects of carbon emissions on the planet, you may be anxious to get these new boilers installed right away. However, you will have to wait a little while longer.
As of now, there aren’t any working models of hydrogen boilers available on the market for people to buy and install. The good news is that several boiler manufacturers are working to introduce such boilers in the market soon, with some prototypes in progress already.
Some of the companies are working on hydrogen-ready boilers, which are basically boilers that can run on normal gas and hydrogen. The idea behind it is that people can install these boilers and continue using normal gas, LPG, propane, etc. And then, as soon as the hydrogen fuel is launched and available for residential use, they can switch the boilers to hydrogen without having to spend some making changes in the house or buying a new boiler.
Besides that, the government is also constantly working with the heating industry and boiler manufacturers to accelerate the switch to hydrogen fuel. Some of their projects include the HyDeploy project.
Hosted at the Keele University, Staffordshire, this project aims to test the viability of a 20:80 hydrogen to gas blend being supplied in the national gas grid. The project is already being reviewed by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and will make it easy for everyone to adopt the fuel in the first phase of the project. Similarly, another project, Hy4Heat, is testing the viability of a 100% hydrogen fuel being supplied for gas and heating appliances.
Then, there’s the Hydrogen Supply Programme which aims to find efficient ways to produce hydrogen with the least amount of carbon emissions. Currently, most of the hydrogen fuel that is being produced is through fossil fuels, which is contributing to the carbon emission problem. The government has invested £20 million in this project.
How Much Will Hydrogen Boilers Cost?
Another important question that many people may be wondering is how much will hydrogen boilers cost? This is what makes hydrogen boilers so good. Although it is still hard to predict exactly how much these new boilers would cost, you can rest assured knowing that it won’t be too greater than the usual gas boilers available in the market right now.
This is because hydrogen boilers will follow similar technology and mechanism, which will make it easy to switch. As of now, most gas boilers in the market fall somewhere between £400 and £2500. Likewise, hydrogen boilers will also fall somewhere around that range only, depending on the type of boiler, the model, manufacturer, etc.
Even if you factor in the installation costs, the price on average shouldn’t go over £3000. If you really do want an accurate estimate of how much a hydrogen boiler will cost you, you can ask your gas engineer.
What Changes Will You Have to Make in the House to Install Hydrogen Boilers?
The best part about hydrogen boilers and what makes them such a viable solution to the carbon emissions problem is their compatibility with the existing infrastructure and system. This means you won’t have to change the pipes or fittings in your house just to use the new hydrogen fuel.
The hydrogen can easily be supplied with the old infrastructure and pipes, fittings, appliances already in your house. At most, you might have to call over a gas engineer to swap out a few components in your appliances for safety purposes and to make sure the appliance runs on hydrogen fuel efficiently.
Besides that, you don’t need to worry about making any drastic changes in the house or spending a lot of money to accommodate the new fuel.
Hydrogen boilers are definitely the future of boilers. Moreover, now that you know everything you need to know about hydrogen-fuelled boilers, you must be excited to make the switch right away. However, you must remember the purpose behind these hydrogen boilers.
They are all part of the larger goal of controlling carbon emissions in the environment and helping the climate. Therefore, even though it’s going to take a while to install these new boilers, it doesn’t mean that you can’t take any steps right now to play your part.
Even if you are using gas boilers at home, you must make sure they are always running smoothly and efficiently to control their use and emissions. As a result, make sure you schedule regular appointments with your gas engineer to check and maintain all your gas appliances. Visit our website to book a session today.