The way we heat our homes in the EU today weighs heavily on the environment and our household budgets, with 60% of heating appliances being old and inefficient and the yearly replacement rate lying at only 4%. Today the H2020 HARP project releases an online tool that will enable consumers in 5 EU countries to assess the energy efficiency of their installed heating appliance and support them in finding a more efficient alternative.

A new online tool released today by the HARP project, funded by the Horizon Europe programme of the Europen Commission. This new tool will enable consumers in France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and Portugal to know how their installed heating appliance fits on the current EU energy label for space and water heaters. The aim of this assessment is to motivate consumers to look for a more efficient alternative, pushing for a higher rate of planned replacement of old and inefficient appliances. The tool will also accompany the consumer in the replacement process. After the user fills in a short form, the online application will provide:

• an overview of the different suitable alternatives and their benefits;
• guidance to find installers that could help replace the user’s heater;
• an overview of the available incentives at the national level.

The HARP online tool will accompany the consumer throughout the whole decision process from raising awareness to providing tailored practical assistance.

Joana Fernandes, Coordinator of the HARP project, said:

“Winter is at its peak. It is the moment to look for energy efficient heating solutions that deliver comfort at lower costs and reduced environmental impact. Here’s where the HARP online application can help: it is a decision support tool that will steer consumers towards the most adequate solution to heat their home, and the savings they can expect from more energy efficient and renewable solutions.“

Inefficient heating systems have a huge impact on the EU’s energy consumption and CO₂ emissions considering that 80% of our households’ energy use goes into heating and hot water. Even though the Ecodesign and Energy Labelling regulations for space and water heaters, in place since 2015, removed the worst performing products from the market, many inefficient boilers are still in use today.

Leopoldo Micò, from Solar Heat Europe, stated:

“Boilers can last for over 20 years, and their replacement rate is very low. With this tool, we want to help consumers identify if their old heater falls into low energy efficiency class (C-class, or lower) and assist them in planning a future replacement.”

Notes:
To access the HARP online tool click here: https://heating-retrofit.eu/harp-app/
You can find more resources of the HARP project here: https://heating-retrofit.eu/resources/

HARP (Heating Appliances Retrofit Planning) is a project funded by the EU Horizon 2020 programme aiming to raise consumer awareness on the inefficiency of their heating systems and to accompany the adoption of efficient alternatives.

Contact: Pia Cencig, Communication Officer at ECOS – pia.cencig@ecostandard.org – ( +33)768895029