Mastering heat pumps in the Highlands
Dornie Croft is a luxury holiday accommodation business in the West Highlands. Their two self-catering cottages are built on a family-owned croft and reflect the area’s traditions.
Dornie Croft are in a rare position: they built their properties to run on air source heat pumps. But without the technological expertise to run them effectively, they weren’t getting the most from the investment. Guests were occasionally left without hot water during stays. While it didn’t happen often, it had a big impact when it did.
With guidance from Climate Springboard, business partner Shona MacLennan began in late 2023 by learning how to interpret the information from their smart meter. This helped her better understand the system’s operating principles, such as how heat pumps use energy differently throughout the day.
This knowledge gave her the confidence to set the thermostat controls to suit the needs of guests and ask the necessary questions of the installation team on a call-back visit.
She has also added information in each cottage about the low-emission heating system to discourage guests from tinkering with the settings.
“[Climate Springboard] enabled us to understand how we could put practical actions in place that will help us financially and environmentally.” Shona MacLennan
This summer, no guests have experienced issues with heating or hot water supply – a huge relief for the small and busy team where reviews mean everything. By switching to a renewable electricity tariff, the heat pumps are also costing less to run.
Their net-zero plan developed during Climate Springboard workshops, was a critical factor in Dornie Croft has achieving ‘gold’ Green Tourism status.
They are also 2024 finalists for the Scottish Environment Business and Highlands and Islands Thistle awards, which they attribute to the evidence gathered while taking part in Climate Springboard. We have our fingers crossed for them!
Top tips from Dornie Croft
- When installing a heat pump, take videos and notes while the installers are demonstrating the system. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and take as much time as you need.
- Switch to a 100% renewable electricity tariff. It made a big change to our carbon footprint and was incredibly easy.
- Climate change is a risk for every business. Factoring it into your risk register should be a priority. In March 2023, we saw the highest tides in 70 years. They got into some of the houses near us, which really brought home how real the danger is.
Learn more
Sign up for Climate Springboard, a free business support programme by Edinburgh Climate Change Institute. It’s designed to equip SMEs in Scotland with the knowledge and tools to start out on their journey to net zero.
It lasts just over a month and is completely free. At the end, attendees leave with a company carbon footprint, a template for a long-term net-zero strategy, and a tailored list of quick ways to lower emissions and costs.
