Whilst there is a lot of discussion and publicity around “hydrogen ready” boilers that can be converted from natural gas to run on 100% hydrogen, there is a mid-term solution that has the potential to reduce carbon emissions from domestic heating without requiring changing the existing appliances.
Current Ideal domestic boilers are ready to run safely on a 20% hydrogen blend with no technical adjustments, look out for the ‘Ready for 20% Hydrogen’ icon across our domestic boiler range website and social media:
What do we mean by a 20% Hydrogen blend?
Hydrogen is a “clean” gas that, when burned, doesn’t release carbon dioxide. It has the potential to provide energy for home heating and hot water with minimal disruption to the householder, who can still have a familiar gas boiler in their home.
A blend of hydrogen of up to 20% mixed with natural gas provides a steppingstone on the way to a full 100% hydrogen conversion of the gas grid which is a longer term ambition and likely to occur from the mid 2030s onwards.
Blending up to 20% hydrogen into the gas grid with existing natural gas could save up to 6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year.
A 20% hydrogen blend means that people can continue to use the gas supply as normal, without any changes being needed to gas appliances or pipework, while still reducing carbon emissions.
What research is there on using hydrogen?
Ideal Heating have been involved in HyDeploy, a ground-breaking green energy trial at Keele University that could help Britain cut its carbon emissions, working towards the Government’s Net Zero target.
HyDeploy aims to prove that blending up to 20% volume of hydrogen with natural gas is a safe and greener alternative to the gas we use now.
Our Ideal Logic boilers have been running on the 20% hydrogen blend at Keele University, with no performance or safety concerns.
HyDeploy Phase 2 will begin on a public gas network later this spring at Winlaton, Gateshead with plenty of Ideal boilers of all ages installed in the trial properties.
Until the gas network and domestic boilers are ready to be converted to 100% hydrogen, a blend of 20% hydrogen into the natural gas mix we use today provides a pathway towards low carbon gas fired central heating.
The Ideal vision
The world is constantly evolving however at Ideal Heating, we are determined to meet our customers’ needs.
Ideal has a long-term vision, to continue to support our customers regardless of fuel source, and to ensure a collaborative approach to the energy transition.
With our extensive, UK based technical expertise in combustion technology unrivalled market knowledge and strong customer relationships we are ready to support our customers on this hydrogen journey.
This puts Ideal Heating in a strong position to provide a complete service package regardless of technology, from design and specification support through to installation, commissioning, service and repair, plus technical training.
While work towards 100% hydrogen deployment is underway, in the present day our customers still need efficient and affordable heating and hot water. Ideal Heating’s highly efficient range of domestic boilers that can run on both natural gas, or a 20% hydrogen blend, provide our customers with an efficient, reliable solution that is ready for the future.