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Source: Fair Go -
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Tim de Souza of Whangarei has a great new purchase but he's not
allowed to use it. The local council has banned him from turning it
on. Tim bought a Fujitsu heat pump about 3 months ago but a
neighbour complained about the noise it emitted and the Whangarei
District Council checked it out and agreed it was too noisy.
The heat pump measures 50dBA at Tim's boundary; it's only allowed
to be 45dBA and that limit drops to 35dBA overnight.
Fair Go went to see Tim and the heat pump was one of the quietest
appliances in Tim's house. The toilet was louder, the phone, the
garage door and we were talking at about 57dBA. Tim thinks the
council noise regulations are very low. He doesn't want to upset
his neighbour but he does want to use his heatpump.
The Whangarei District Council stands by its low noise rule in its
district plan. The councils working with Tim to try to resolve the
issue. This includes advising him of ways to reduce the noise. The
fence between Tim and his neighbour could be made more noise
resistant and failing that the councils looking at commissioning a
design for an affordable sound shield that can be whipped up by a
trades person. The council says this is the first time it's had a
complaint about noise from heat pumps and it will take advice from
other councils around the country that have experience in this
area.
The local installer, Airmaster Airconditioning from Whangarei, is
going to wrap Tim's compressor in lead wrap to try to dull the
noise.
Fujitsu says: "The sound generated by Heat Pumps in general will
vary depending on size. Sound levels of all reputable brands sold
in New Zealand are similar. Fujitsu products are tested to the same
standards and those results we list in our specifications and
brochures. It is common sense that Heat Pumps will produce some
noise as they contain a compressor and fan. Acceptable noise seems
to be a very subjective and personal opinion and while we are aware
of different requirements of different Councils, their limitations
have not specially been an issue to date."
However heat pump noise appears to be an emerging issue around the
country. Acoustic engineer Paul Rayner has been solving noise
problems for 30 years. He says his company Noise Control Ltd gets
about six complaints about heat pumps a month, whereas they used to
get one every three months.
He advises people to think carefully about the placement of the
outdoor unit and sound issues before the heat pump is installed, as
heat pump noise problems are difficult and costly to solve once the
unit is in place.
What you need to know:
Consider noise at a design stage and you will get a simpler and
more cost effective result.
Ask your installer what the noise level is from the heat pump and
if they are familiar with local noise regulations
Noise issues usually occur when the outdoor unit is sited very
close to the boundary.
Make sure your installer's trade qualified to install air
conditioning and heat pumps. They could even be members of IRHACE
the institute of refrigeration heating and air conditioning
engineers - the industry association.
Add a Comment:
Post new commentjessie67 said on 2012-02-10 @ 16:12 NZDT:
It's autumn/winter time again. And as we all know, it's the time when people get to use more often the hot water, heaters, electric blankets, etc. AND HERE COMES MERCURY ENERGY AGAIN!!!!! Definitely, in my opinion, they are ripping us off. Every year, before autumn and winter time, they give this "changes to your electricity pricing letter." EVERY YEAR! Is there no stopping this kind of robbery?
Lochores0 said on 2012-02-10 @ 07:23 NZDT:
http://bobgal.blog.co.nz/2012/02/06/lochores-suck/ makes interesting reading
nana6 said on 2012-02-08 @ 13:36 NZDT:
Is anybody out there had to deal with resin bleed or tanin satining from radiata pine Cheers
nana6 said on 2012-02-08 @ 16:16 NZDT:
should read tanin staining
Jenny57 said on 2012-02-07 @ 15:46 NZDT:
Railtours and Roger Sutherland - RIP OFF TRIP TO ELTON JOHN. Paid over $500 for TRANSPORT ONLY of two Celebration Class Train Tickets to Elton Jonn Concert in Dunedin in November. No celebration anything, he knew weeks before there was no train and that he had to use buses, not a word until it was too late to do anything else! I hear many anothers have contacted Fair Go to do a story - is it happening??????????
rabbit42 said on 2012-02-09 @ 16:42 NZDT:
was suppose to travel with rail tours, got leeter saying no train only bus, rang roger and got money back for tickets and still waiting for full refund of $612.00, said would be back in account b4 xmas still waiting, rung his 0800 numbe r 75 times got threw only once and had to alter voice 4 a phone call back from him, rudeliar, FAIR GO TAKE HIM DOWN
rabbit42 said on 2012-02-09 @ 16:42 NZDT:
was suppose to travel with rail tours, got leeter saying no train only bus, rang roger and got money back for tickets and still waiting for full refund of $612.00, said would be back in account b4 xmas still waiting, rung his 0800 numbe r 75 times got threw only once and had to alter voice 4 a phone call back from him, rudeliar, FAIR GO TAKE HIM DOWN
rabbit42 said on 2012-02-09 @ 16:42 NZDT:
was suppose to travel with rail tours, got leeter saying no train only bus, rang roger and got money back for tickets and still waiting for full refund of $612.00, said would be back in account b4 xmas still waiting, rung his 0800 numbe r 75 times got threw only once and had to alter voice 4 a phone call back from him, rudeliar, FAIR GO TAKE HIM DOWN
rabbit42 said on 2012-02-09 @ 16:43 NZDT:
was suppose to travel with rail tours, got leeter saying no train only bus, rang roger and got money back for tickets and still waiting for full refund of $612.00, rung his 0800 numbe r 75 times got threw only once and had to alter voice 4 a phone call back from him, rudeliar, FAIR GO TAKE HIM DOWN
Jenny57 said on 2012-02-07 @ 15:45 NZDT:
Railtours and Roger Sutherland - RIP OFF TRIP TO ELTON JOHN. Paid over $500 for TRANSPORT ONLY of two Celebration Class Train Tickets to Elton Jonn Concert in Dunedin in November. No celebration anything, he knew weeks before there was no train and that he had to use buses, not a word until it was too late to do anything else! I hear many anothers have contacted Fair Go to do a story - is it happening??????????