Thermal
stores allow the integration of more than one energy source and type into
a central heating system, because as their name suggests, they are a store
of hot water.
Drayton & Ellis have a large thermal store (800 litres) at
our show room, which is part of an integrated central heating system. We
heat the office space with under floor heating and the self contained flat
on the first floor with traditional radiators, all the domestic hot water
comes from the thermal store also. The unit is specifically designed for
use with a heat pump as part of an integrated central heating solution. It
also has thermal solar panels connected to it, and eventually hope to
connect a micro combined heat and power (CHP) unit as well. The thermal
store has a large stainless steel coil inside it for heating the domestic
hot water, because the surface area of this coil is nearly 10 square
metres, it means we can heat large quantities of domestic hot water very
quickly.
The unit could actually provide hot water for a sports club or
small hotel! Because we are storing so much water as part of our central
heating system, we are able to keep the store at quite a low temperature
(about 50 degrees Celsius). This allows the heat pump to operate as
efficiently as possible, yet still provides ample heat for hot water and
central heating. This unit is ideal if you want to connect different heat
sources, for example solid fuel burners, heat pumps, thermal solar panels,
etc, into one central heating system.
