Couple Solar and Heat Pump

The Heat Pump (PAC) is the essential standard for cleaning up a building in Switzerland. However, it adds between 4 000 and 8 000 kWh of additional electricity demand to the household, mainly in winter, at the precise time when solar production is at its lowest.

This seasonal shift creates a challenge. It is false to say that your solar panels will run your heat pump for free all winter (because there is not enough sun). However, the coupling remains essential because the panels will remove 100% of the domestic hot water from the heat pump in summer, as well as a very large part of the heating needs in the inter-season (March-April and September-October).

Ultimately, a well-sized roof generally covers 25 to 40% of the total annual electricity consumption of a heat pump, which considerably softens the additional cost of the electricity bill caused by abandoning fuel oil.

Adapt the management (Smart Grid Ready) and strategically orient the panels.

First make sure that your heat pump is certified 'SG Ready' (Smart Grid Ready). This global standard allows the inverter to tell the heat pump: 'I have a lot of excess sun, take advantage of it to overheat the house or the domestic hot water now'.

As for the panels, if the goal is really to help the heat pump, prefer (if the roof allows it) a strongly inclined installation (roof at 40° or even on vertical BIPV facades). These inclinations better 'catch' the winter sun very low on the horizon, offering up to 30% additional yield in the middle of December, at the critical time for the CAP.