Welcome, to a Warm, Comfortable, Energy Saving Home . . .

It's not good news for any of us that home energy costs are at an all-time high and still rising. So, what can we do about it? These pages will give you an insight into our range of energy efficient solutions which could save you many hundreds of dollars each year, whilst also combatting the adverse effects on the environment by reducing carbon emissions.

Studies have shown that in-slab heating provides a most enjoyable warming experience!

Heating a concrete slab from cold takes a relatively long time, at least several hours, but once at operating temperature, it will radiate heat consistently. For this reason, in-slab heating is generally best suited to buildings with permanent or high occupancy.

Efficient, Luxurious, Simple: Used in conjunction with our solar heat-pump water heaters, home heating with hydronic (water-filled) heating coils in the slab provides luxurious comfort. Hydronic Floor heating pipes are laid throughout the concrete slab in loops or 'coils', during construction. Each coil can be controlled independently to heat only the area(s) required. (Groups of coils can be managed as one 'Zone' and controlled typically by room thermostat) Warm water is circulated through the system of pipe work, the floor is heated and radiates warmth throughout the house. With our optional twin heat exchanger units you can also heat your swimming pool using the same heat pump.

Concrete Slab - Heating System The completed slab heating system is comprised of: Pipes coiled in the slab (usually 1 "coil" per 20sqm) Each Coil has a shutoff valve (usually 1 or more manifolds located in cupboards) Room thermostat for general temperature control Flow & return lines and recirculating pump A buffer tank is usually required Various bits'n'pieces (plumbing) Timer, switches/breakers etc (electrical) . . and of course water heater!

How Much ?

Skyline Energy can provide a full design, and supply a complete kit and technical support for your builder/local trades to install - it's not rocket science, or a full installation (depending on actual location)
Generally, the larger the project the lower the cost per square meter.

• We don't recommend using traditional solar or evacuated tube boosters, as these provide the least input when needed most
• Fully installed using Natural GAS boiler - from about $100 per square metre area
• Fully installed using an air-sourced Heat-Pump - from about $130 per square metre
• (We don't recommend using under-capacity Heat-Pumps boosted by electric elements)
• Fully installed using a geothermal Heat-Pump - from about $180 per square metre
• Fully installed using LPG - forget it! the running cost is too high - use Heat-Pump

Hydronic Slab Water Heaters

THEY DON'T WORK WELL ENOUGH IN WINTER!   Ask this question of your Solar Hydronics supplier: Over the heating season, what percentage of the total energy will come from the Solar, and how much from the "back-up" heater ? For most homes, solar is just not a cost-efficient option for hydronic heating, typically providing only about 20% of the energy required. (unless you have massive water storage - thousands of litres in insulated tanks, to collect and store lots of energy when it available, and deliver it over winter) In normal winter conditions, a Cold Climate Hydronics heat-pump will use less energy than the booster required in a solar-boosted hydronics system. If you are in a natural gas area, you'll probably just use a straight gas boiler, if no gas use a correctly sized hydronic heat-pump. We recommend Air-Sourced heat-pumps over Geothermal heaters, WHY? click here for a more detailed explanation. If you don't have adequate power supply for the required heat-pump, only then would you choose an LPG boiler. Note: The only other exception to this would be if the energy harnessed over summer could be fully utilised for a secondary purpose such as Pool heating. The additional cost of including a solar tube array system may then be justified. In summer, evacuated tube systems can provide 100% of the energy required for domestic potable hot water In winter and in the colder climates they will need to run their boosters to ensure a safe water temperature. In the Southern States, home heating in winter requires far more energy than potable hot water. In the Southern States where winter heating is a necessity, evacuated tubes just do not provide enough energy when needed most, and for most home installations, can therefore at best only provide a token input. If you are in a natural gas area, you'll probably just use a straight gas boiler, if no gas use a heat-pump. In normal winter conditions, a heat-pump will use less power than the booster required in an evacuated tube hydronics system. If you don't have adequate power supply for the required heat-pump, only then would you choose an LPG boiler.

Natural GAS Boiler

Nothing to get excited about here, its just a GAS boiler!

• Cheap to buy, cheap to run etc. etc.
• Combo models available for domestic hot water AND hydronics in single unit
• Available in various sizes to suit system demand
• LPG models also available - but LPG is VERY expensive to run - recommend using air-sourced heat-pump if adequate electricity supply available

Heat-Pump Water Heaters:

Geothermal
Below ground, the temperature doesn't fluctuate as much as above ground. We can take advantage of that by burying pipes underground to extract heat. Generally, the deeper you go the ground gets warmer. The problem with Geothermal systems is that the cost of burying the pipes far outweighs the operating cost savings compared to an air-sourced heat-pump. (you will never save enough in lower operating costs, when compared to the installed cost of an air-sourced system)

Air-Sourced
HEATING THE NATURAL WAY: An air-sourced hydronic heat pump uniquely extracts solar heat energy found abundant in the in air and transfers it to water.  

The system is comprised of: Floorcoils laid in the slab to 1 or more manifolds Flow & return lines to/from manifolds 1 or more Heater Units Buffer Tanks & expansion sub-system Recirculating pumps Wall mounted thermostat (Zone control)

Our range of sensational air-souced hydronic heat-pumps are rated from 10kw to 200kw output. These "21st Century" Hydronic Slab Water Heaters are unlike any other, because: They have sensationally low running costs They can keep your home warm all winter regardless of weather They are very durable and robust Multiple units can heat any sized slab We don't use under- capacity units boosted by electric elements Almost as efficient as Geothermal heat-pumps, but much cheaper to install

An Ecological Solution:

The mysterious heat pump.
At first, our claims about this being a high efficiency solar system may seem outrageous, but really its quite simple - there is no magic, just science. Pushing refrigerant through a massive heat-exchanger at about -30^oC, it readily absorbs solar energy in the form of heat out the air. Because they don’t rely on direct sunlight radiation, they can operate in all seasons of the year, under all conditions; shade, overcast, sun, rain, frost, even at night.

Long after a conventional solar collector array or evacuated tube system has given up and reverted to its booster, our air-sourced heat pump is still absorbing vast amounts of solar energy.

Geothermal systems provide the most efficient heating, however - unlike much of Europe where hydronic heating has been used for decades, in most area’s of Australia an air-sourced heat pump will provide similar performance to a ground sourced (Geothermal) heat pump, but there is no need bury hundreds of metres of pipes in the paddock.

With zoning control and even remote activation by telephone if required, used in conjunction with good building practices such as good insulation, hydronic heating with our state of the art, correctly sized air-sourced heat pumps can be an economical and ecological solution to your home heating requirements.

During the life of this product, electricity will be generated more & more from renewable resources, making it the energy of choice:

Using the Sustainability Vic target 12% green power figure of 1.093kg CO²/kwh, and the solar contribution for our heat-pump under melbourne conditions (67%), it will produce 4% less CO² than gas.