"Driveshield have successfully completed almost a thousand telematics installations and several hundred service calls for Balfour Beatty Utility Solutions, and continue to manage the project......During our six year association all work has been carried out to an extremely high standard"

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;

An Air Source Heat Pump case Study by Natural Warmth (www.natural-warmth.com)

CLIENTS:

Daisy Chain registered charity, Norton, Stockton on Tees.

www.daisychainproject.co.uk

BRIEF:

Provide heating for a new Day Centre measuring approximately 9300 sq. ft (864 sq. metres) over two floors - to include hot water to two kitchen units and numerous toilets, many with disabled facilities.

SOLUTION:

To meet all requirements via the installation of two air source heat pumps.

PROJECT:

Natural Warmth was called in by the charity, which wanted to reduce its carbon footprint while at the same time lowering costs by reducing the amount of electricity being used.

This was a special challenge as the building was to house respite care and support services for the charity that works with families who have children with autism.

Therefore it was important to ensure a constant room temperature for the staff who would be working there for eight or more hours a day as well as ensuring the comfort of the children and families who use the Centre to take part in a range of activities aimed at aiding their development.

Natural Warmth engineers installed and commissioned the system just before Christmas 2009 – a time when the regular daily temperature was around -7 degrees.

The size of the building and the bitter weather conditions meant that the system had to be run at full gain for a number of weeks before it reached optimum heat and hot water delivery. That was achieved in early February and since then there have been no problems.

Matt Simpson is the Daisy Chain Project Manager: “I think, like a lot of people, I was a bit unsure as to whether the two pumps would be sufficient to heat the Day Centre to our requirements. Steve Heslop explained that the temperatures were about the worst-case scenario for launching a new system, but we were desperate to go ahead. By the first week in February all doubts had disappeared and we had to turn down the heat setting on at least three occasions – the Centre was too warm!”

SUMMARY:

Early teething troubles due to the size of the installation and the atrocious weather conditions were to be expected and engineers were always quick to respond to any call outs.

“I would say that Steve was always here right away if we had a problem,” said Matt Simpson. “Although there were no families using the facility at the time he understood how important it was to us, and the families we help, to get it right before we could start to use the Centre properly. I couldn’t fault Natural Warmth for their work throughout this project.”

Hilary Morrison is the mother of Josh who has Asperger’s and dyspraxia – for her the Centre is a vital part of their life; “This place is a Godsend,” she said. “It is very important that I can be sure that I am bringing Josh somewhere where he will be safe and comfortable. Since we started using the Centre it has been absolutely fantastic. Given the size of it I was surprised at just how warm it was. And although Josh doesn’t grasp the concept of global warming I personally support the idea of everyone doing what they can to reduce their carbon footprint.”

Related Links

• Heat Pumps (Air Source and Ground Source)
• Air Source Heat Pump Case Study

 

A Ground Source Heat Pump case Study by Natural Warmth (www.natural-warmth.com)

CLIENTS:

Mr & Mrs David and Susan Chadwick, Kirkby in Cleveland

BRIEF:

Provide heating and hot water for a dormer bungalow originally built to house a farm manager but which has been substantially rebuilt and extended in the last 13 years to create a 4 bedroomed family home. There is no gas supply to the village.

SOLUTION:

A ground source heat pump to provide all services to the property and fit new radiators for added efficiency.

PROJECT:

The property was previously heated by an oil-fired boiler, which was coming to the end of its useful life, which led the Chadwicks to consider possible alternatives. Much of the internal remedial work had been carried out so under floor heating was no longer viable, but they were very interested in finding out more about heat pumps. A former work colleague of Mrs. Chadwick had one and that is where they began their research. After about a year of looking into the subject they attended a low carbon, green energy exhibition in Harrogate and that is where they met Steve.

Sue Chadwick takes up the story: “We are both retired and therefore on a fixed income and, like everyone in a similar position, we were concerned about the spiralling cost of oil. We realized we had a great opportunity to be more environmentally friendly and control outgoings at the same time so we decided to go with a heat pump and - because we had plenty of land around the house - we decided to go with a ground source heat pump.

“One of the things that sold Natural Warmth to us,” adds David Chadwick, “was the fact that Steve didn’t ask for any money up front for a survey. Some competitors had asked us for £150 - £200! He also told us about the grants available - he applied for them on our behalf and just knocked the money off the bill. The clincher was that Natural Warmth did the job from start to finish. Others were telling me we would need to find our own digger to dig the trenches before they came in to lay the pipes and we may need other tradesmen to assist. The simplicity of the Natural Warmth ‘one stop shop’ was very attractive to us,” he added.

Their home is set in a beautiful location looking out towards the Cleveland Hills, but the idyllic setting brings its own problems;

“That’s where the weather comes from,” said Mr. Chadwick. “We are quite exposed so it can get very, very cold with strong winds and lashing rain battering up against the house.”

Work began in September of 2008 – and it didn’t all go according to plan.

“Part of the problem was the amount of rain we had,” said Mr. Chadwick. “They had to lay something like 450 metres of pipes and, because of the weather, the ‘neat machine’ wouldn’t work so we had to do it the conventional way. Also there were a lot of tree roots and things which meant digging the trenches wasn’t as straight forward as we might have hoped.”

“It looked like the Somme out there,” joked Mrs. Chadwick, and it led to a bit of tension as the Chadwicks wanted the job completing as quickly as possible while Natural Warmth saw their costs escalating on a fixed contract. But it was all soon amicably resolved.

“I can’t praise the crew highly enough,” adds Mrs. Chadwick. “They were excellent. When they came in to fix the radiators they were neat and clean and any furniture that had to be moved was always returned to its original position.  They were in the house for two to three weeks and they always made sure any carpets were covered with plastic sheeting before work began.

Since the system was commissioned in January 2009 it has been tweaked slightly to ensure optimum performance and a larger radiator was installed in the hallway to provide greater warmth and comfort on entering the home.

SUMMARY:

The Chadwicks are both delighted with system, “The house is very warm and we also have lashings of hot water - there is never a shortage even when our children bring our grandchildren to stay and the washing machine and bath times take a heavy toll of the system,” they said.

The Chadwicks have also been wise enough to have a white meter installed, which means that they get cheap rate electricity between midnight and 7 am. This has driven their costs down even further and Mr Chadwick expects that the system will have paid for itself within about 10 years.

The initial cost was a slight concern but when that is offset against lower bills, year round comfort and a reduced carbon footprint the Chadwicks strongly recommend heat pumps and Natural Warmth

Related Links

• Ground Source Heat Pumps
• Ground Source Heat Pump Case Study

 

"Jon strives to ensure that the best possible service is being provided and is always keen to be advised of any ways in which his service can be tailored to individuals"

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;

"We would have no hesitation in recommending darren's work to all who'll listen, our only complaint would be that we don't get as many opportunities as we'd like to recommend him on."

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;

"Writing and making decisions for the order of service was one of the hardest things we have ever had to do as a family but you made the technical side of it so much easier.  Your tact, sensitivity, advice and thoughtfullness were hugely appreciated everytime we spoke to you.  It could have been a very cold and impersonal process but you listened to us, were kind, efficient and were never embarassed by our tears.  You helped us to create something which was personal and very much what we wanted.

Thank you so much."

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;

"You took the time to ask me what I wanted, gave me several designs to choose from and charged me the price you said I would pay"

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;

"I would therefore unreservedly recommend your services to both friends and Business contacts in the knowledge that the work for them would be carried out to the same standard as I have experienced myself"

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;

"The service cards and bookmarks were excellent, everyone commented on them"

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;

"I would not hesitate to recommend Mint Design and Print to anyone and would certainly be using your service again."

To read the full testimonial please click the thumbnail below;