Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 24 May 2019 to Question 255264, in what way (a) the nature of buildings and (b) the use of a product by the consumer affects the efficiency of the boiler.
The 2018 uplifts to boiler installation standards were made through an amendment to the 2018 Building Regulations. Compliance with Building Regulations is enforced by Building Control.
Compliance with Energy-related Products (ErP) standards is carried out by Notified Bodies, as defined by EU Directive 92/42/EEC: Hot Water Boilers. A list of Notifying Bodies can be found at the following URL: http://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/nando/index.cfm?fuseaction=directive.print&refe_cd=92%2F42%2FEEC
In response to his question on the percentage of boilers sold after the introduction of the current standards, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 24th May 2019 to Question 255264.
The details of the research carried out on real-world boiler performance are available here:
https://www.bre.co.uk/sap2012/page.jsp?id=2768
https://www.bre.co.uk/sap2012/page.jsp?id=2767
https://www.bre.co.uk/sap2016/page.jsp?id=3619
Boilers operate within a household heating system comprising pumps, pipes, emitters and controls. The efficient operation of the system depends on the proper sizing, positioning and maintenance of these components to ensure how water is distributed as it should around the building. The heating system has a dynamic relationship with the fabric of the building such that efficiency is also affected by the level of insulation, ventilation, the extent to which doors and windows are kept open, and ambient heat from other household systems. Performance is also affected by the manner in which the consumer makes use of timers, thermostats and individual radiator controls, and by variation in gas content.
Boiler efficiency must be measured under test conditions to ensure comparability between products. There are too many variables in situ, as described above, to allow fair comparability.