Can outdoor Heat Pump units create a noise nuisance?

With more and more people opting for heat pumps as a home heating or cooling solution the noise issue becomes more apparent.

Many companies selling heat pumps will often look for the easiest install to allow for competitive pricing in the market place afraid that if they suggest it should be in a different place because this will add to the price.

The closer your neighbours and particularly if it’s close to your neighbours bedroom the more likely they may complain.

Inverters have help with noise from start up which has been encountered in highly condensed residents like retirement homes. So technology solved this problem.

For many houses this will not be an issue to worry about but don’t be afraid to ask before its installed.

The larger the system the more careful you need to be and some brands will be better than others.

They all have outdoor noise ratings just realise that decibels go up in a multiplication type way so even one more decibel can be a lot.

The size of the outdoor unit must be considered with small ones unlikely to be a problem. While most people are more concerned about how the will look. If two systems are the same capacity but one is smaller physically than the other one, common sense would suggest that the smaller one will produce more air noise.

The noise will normally follow the air flow and fences and hedges can diffuse the noise (this is good), because heat pump systems need a lot of air it is not very practical to cover in the outdoor unit and making some form of silencer would not be cost effective, its far easier to pay a little bit more and have it installed in a better position.