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Has anyone got a DVS or HRV system? We are thinking about putting one in our home - either that or a heat pump. Our wood burner has to be out by 2010 ( council rules) We can no longer get free firewood so thought we may as well replace the wood burner now. Would love to hear some feedback! Also, heat pumps - are they good & do they use a lot of power?

I have had a DVS system in our house for about three years. They are great for keeping down condensation (although I have found that they do not contain 100% of the condensation). What I really like about them is that when we go away and the house is locked up, we come home to a fresh smelling home as the DVS still circulates the air throughout the house. Another great thing is that it utilises the roofspace temperature so that when the sun is shining on a winters days - warm air is forced back down into the house.

Our heating is gas and underfloor heating so I have'nt had any experience with a heat pump although I have friends who have them and swear by them.

What about on a really cold day - the air in the roof will be cold cold wont it? so is it still warm freezing day? I cant afford a DVS as well as a heat pump.

If the air is cool in the roofspace - a DVS does not convert it to warm air. You still need to heat your house so you would probably be best to invest in a heat pump instead. Maybe you can set heat pumps to automatically turn on and off even when you aren't home?

We have recently installed a heat pump in our hall, which has made a huge difference to the warmth in our house. Personally I wouldn't like it in the living areas as it is quite noisy, despite being an inverter model, which is supposed to be quieter. It is very cheap to run though and I worked out that our 6.4 kw model is costing about $1.10 per day to run and that keeps the hall, three bedrooms, bathroom, toilet and laundry rooms warm. We haven't needed to use a heater in the bedrooms since we installed it. We put a woodburner in our lounge last year as hubby gets free firewood and that is lovely. We looked at a DVS system but decided to go for a heatpump instead. Consumer, if you are a member, have excellent articles on these subjects. They are available in the library usually if you don't have access on line and are interested.

Hi Sue, sorry I cannot comment about the DVS, looked into it for our big 100year old villa (last house) but did not like the 3,500 quote. They are not for heating a home though, more for moisture removal and circulation from what I understand. We had a gas inbuilt fire with remote but it cost us $70 a week last winter. We also had a heatpump installed in our formal lounge (very large room!) and it was effective but quite costly because it was not the inverter type as AJ has. The inverter ones do not cause the power surges that the other type do so keep the heat/cooling system more even and cost much less to run. The beauty of a heatpump is also the option of using it as an air conditioner in the summer.
I highly recommend that you do some independent research yourself through the consumer magazine, the power company for costings, internet search etc as you often get told misleading information from sales reps trying to peddle their wares.
Let us know what you decide on, in our new home we have a log burner connected to the wetback and dh has just installed a heat transfer system.

Roseyone - we have both a heat pump and an HRV. One does not take the place of the other. If you try to rely on a DVS or HRT in Timaru for heat you will freeze. The heat pump is excellent and keeps our house cosy and warm at a reasonable cost. We close off a couple of bedrooms while the HP is running to concentrate the heat into our quite large living area. In previous years the bedrooms had become quite damp and musty smelling but with our HRV running the air in there, though cold, is as fresh as a daisy and can be heated quickly, because the air is so dry, in minutes when the room is required. During May which was quite mild, the roof temperatures reached around 20 degrees and 15 degrees in the house which meant we needed the heat pump only for a few hours in the evening and a power account of only $87. June has been really cold and the HP has been in use most of the day (I don't leave it running at night) I expect, because I have done the readings, that the June power bill will be around $160. Given a normal month, with Canterbury's usual beautifully clear days with sunshine, I would expect the HRV to kick in and keep the room temperatures a bit higher and the Heat Pump to be used less in the daytime, with a power bill of maybe $130. Talking winter here, of course. I hope this helps.

Yes I agree with all that Faye, It is Sue Murcury who is looking for information. We have an excellent log burner in this home and with the heat transfer system and some heating with electricity we are happy enough.
There is no way you could heat a home with DVS as that is not what they are designed for at all. I quite like my dehumifier to removing excess moisture as well.