Heat pumps should not be fitted in quiet residential areas because the ‘constant humming’ could be too noisy, government ministers say

Heat pumps should not be fitted in quiet areas because they could cause a noise nuisance, according to official guidance.

UK Government ministers have launched a review amid concerns the constant humming may be too noisy if hundreds of them are placed in residential areas.

Under new rules planned by the SNP/Green Government, homes will be marked down if they have a gas boiler rather than a more environmentally-friendly alternative such as a heat pump.

It means homeowners will pay a financial price when they try to market their property if they fail to get rid of gas boilers, while both buyers and sellers face extra responsibilities to ensure a home becomes more green.

Last night Scottish Tory net zero, energy and transport spokesman Douglas Lumsden said: ‘The noise objection to heat pumps may seem minor compared with the enormous costs householders face and the practical difficulties of installing them in flats or rural areas. 

Pictured, MSP Douglas Lumsden, Scottish Tory net zero, energy and transport spokesman

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Typically, an individual heat pump placed outside a home gives off a sustained hum of between 40 and 60 decibels (stock image)

‘But it’s serious enough to spark a UK Government review, and shows that heat pumps are not a magic bullet or one-size-fits-all solution.

‘Yet that’s the position [Green minister] Patrick Harvie has adopted, ignoring a whole range of other options to impose his inflexible and extremist agenda. 

‘A real transition to net zero involves a mix of solutions and practical approaches, not the dogmatic ideology of the increasingly cranky Greens.’

The Institute of Acoustics provides guidance for ‘those thinking about purchasing a heat pump in order to avoid significant adverse noise impacts associated with their use’.

Guidance by the professional body states that homeowners should not ‘locate [heat pumps] in quieter locations, or near sensitive amenity spaces’ and should not mount the units on a wall or roof ‘especially if they are shared’.

Typically, an individual heat pump placed outside a home gives off a sustained hum of between 40 and 60 decibels, about as loud as a refrigerator or dishwasher.

Experts fear that if many of them are placed in a residential area the combined noise could cause a disturbance.

Under new rules planned by the SNP/Green Government, homes will be marked down if they have a gas boiler rather than a heat pump or other alternatives (stock image)

It emerged in May that UK Government ministers would oversee a review into heat pumps after concerns about noise were raised by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. 

The report is due out later this summer.

Green minister Mr Harvie has said he wants it to be ‘in the financial interests’ of buyers and sellers to replace gas boilers.

A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘Heat pumps are a tried and tested way of heating homes which have been around for decades and are used in countries across Europe.

‘Thousands are already in use throughout Scotland and there is little evidence to suggest they are any louder than other heating systems.

‘Switching to low-carbon heating is essential to meet our legal climate targets and could help cut costs for all of us in the long run.’