Troubleshooting Thermal Pile Heat Pumps

Circulation Pumps on Site

Services: Troubleshooting and Remedial Works 

Our team restored a defunct ground-source heat pump system at an educational facility that had been shut down for several years. Instead of replacing the heat pumps, we removed the failed factory controls, installed a custom controller, and performed refrigeration circuit diagnostics and safety checks to bring the original plant back online. Our engineers also tested the geothermal loops embedded within the building's structural thermal piles, upgraded the plantroom pipework, and recommissioned the hydraulic system to maximise the heat pump thermal efficiency and output. Heat meters were installed to monitor heat production and track carbon reductions. 

To improve seasonal energy efficiency, we also integrated a plate heat exchanger to introduce a basic free cooling loop. This modification allows the system to bypass the compressors during warmer months and use the ground temperature for low-energy cooling. Recommissioning the existing hydronic circuits and retrofitting the controls avoided the capital cost of a new plant while restoring the facility's low-carbon heating operations. 

Interested in learning more? 

If you'd like to learn more about this project, request a more detailed case study, or discuss a troubleshooting and remedial works project, we'd be delighted to hear from you.