Pictured: Senior Bursar Robert Gardiner, Mark Sims of Gowing & Hunt Ltd Building Services and Estates Manager Andrew Gair outside 4 Gresham Road
The degasification of the Â鶹ŮÀÉ estate has continued with the first complete refurbishment of an outside property, which includes the installation of two Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) at 4 Gresham Road.
With energy costs and the climate emergency at the forefront of people’s thoughts, the College initiated a degasification project led by Estates Manager Andrew Gair, whose CV includes working as a consultant in the field of mechanical engineering. The Gresham Road property was identified for an upgrade, which is now complete following work by led by Mark Sims of Gowing & Hunt Ltd, a building services company based near Ely, Cambridgeshire.
The name of the property was changed from ‘Cobwebs’ to Goodhart House as the refurbishment was generously funded by a donation through a bequest from the will of James (Harry) Goodhart (Natural Sciences 1953). A gas-fired boiler with 80% efficiency – a 48KW output from a 60KW input – was replaced by two ASHPs. Each ASHP has an output of 11.2KW. The efficiency is variable, with an average seasonal efficiency of 250% (translates to a system capacity of 9kW). The flow temperature off the system can be as low as 40C, with the entire system being weather compensated, to drive down energy consumption.
The thermal performance of the property has been improved with secondary glazing and draught excluders. The original emitters (radiators) remain. The ASHPs run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and only stop when the desired temperature is reached on the internal thermostat, which is in constant communication with the external devices. The ASHPs emit such minimal noise that it is barely discernible in a city centre location and birdsong is heard, while a ‘quiet mode’ can be used for night-time operations.
The ASHPs are housed unobtrusively in the garden of the property, with the Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MEP) housed in the refurbished basement. The constant running of the system means heating and hot water are always available to the occupants of the property, meaning the postgraduate students who will call Goodhart House home should always be comfortable. Radiator thermostatic valves used to control internal temperatures and a hot water immersion tank offering capacity to boost supply based on demand.
Read the College’s initial story on the degasification of the estate (from February 2023):
Two Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHP) in the grounds of 4 Gresham Road
Mark Sims of Gowing & Hunt Ltd Building Services shows Senior Bursar Robert Gardiner, right, and Estates Manager Andrew Gair the plant machinery in the basement of 4 Gresham Road
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