The owners of six new-build homes on the Borgweg in Stedum are sick of the ‘Vincent’ heat pump. “Disruptions are flying around your ears.”
As Arend Laning (64) trudges upstairs, he is greeted by the hum of the heat pump. As soon as he has arrived in the attic of his owner-occupied home on the Borgweg in Stedum, Laning gives the pump a tap with his hand. It seems brotherly, but he really hates the thing. The ‘Vincent’ shows many defects.
The heat pump has malfunctions every now and then or breaks down quickly. “I keep track of how often the technician comes here. That’s certainly every month. They can almost spend the night here in a construction hut. In the summer months it will be fine, but when the pump really has to be put to work, problems will befall you,” says Laning. “It looks slick, logo on it. But it is a disaster device, a defective product.” His neighbors have the same problems.
Culprit
The six homes on Borgweg were completed in December 2022, after the previous ones were demolished due to earthquake damage. Preserved and well, including the ‘Vincent’. A brand new heat pump model from ITHO Daalderop. In fact, the pump was not officially launched until six months later, in the summer of 2023. Production has now stopped.
This ‘Vincent’ turns out to be the culprit. Tenants in Drachten and Steenwijk recently also complained about problems with this heat pump. In Stedum things went wrong soon after delivery. Even before Laning moved into his home in April 2023, his heat pump had already broken down after several malfunctions in January. A new one arrived in February 2023, which still regularly has malfunctions.
‘Had to shower at the neighbors for a week’
Result: a technician often has to come. That can sometimes take a while, Laning knows from experience. When the pump broke down again in January this year, he could no longer take a shower at home. “I had to take a shower with family across the street for a week. I laugh about it now, but it’s actually deeply sad. At some point you’re done with all the problems.”
Neighbor Ubbo Freese (75) already saw the rain. He only moved in May 2023, wary of heat pump issues. “We stayed in our temporary home as long as possible.” Another neighbor’s house has still been empty since it was completed. Laning: “He deliberately stays in his temporary home because of the misery here. And guess what: his heat pump is also broken. While it was running at 16 degrees Celsius all that time.”
‘It was as if an air ambulance had landed’
Nevertheless, Freese was not spared the disaster: he will soon receive his third heat pump. The first one broke a few months after the move, the new one ‘died’ even faster. In December last year the device broke down within two weeks. Of the six homes, Laning’s is the only one currently working. The rest are in emergency mode, causing the pump to incur a lot of energy costs.
Malfunctions and defects are not the only source of annoyance. The noise is also a nuisance. Because the heat pump hangs on a wooden partition instead of a stone wall, it ‘roars’ more than normal. “In the beginning it was even worse. As if an air ambulance landed on your roof. But I still sleep with earplugs,” Laning said. “One of my neighbors slept on his couch in the living room for the first three months, that thing made such a noise.”
‘The choice had already been made’
Laning and Freese are disappointed that they had no input with the National Coordinator Groningen (NCG) and contractor Dijkstra-Draaisma when their new homes were built. “They didn’t listen, the choice for Vincent had already been made,” says Freese. “We got the key and: look, this is your new heat pump,” says Laning.
According to Laning, NCG has known about the problems for months. “But they don’t care about it. I almost stumble over the excuses and ‘we understand you’ statements, but in the meantime we are left to our own devices. That’s really disappointing.” On Friday, the residents sent a letter to the NCG and contractor Dijkstra-Draaisma. “I wouldn’t care how they solve it, but we don’t want Vincent anymore.”
Teething problems
The NCG understands that a letter has been sent, but has not yet read it. “It goes without saying that we find it annoying for the residents and we want to solve the problems quickly,” says spokesperson Petra de Maar. The installer informed her that the heat pump is experiencing teething problems and that work is being done to improve the product.
According to De Maar, the installer has created a compensation scheme and informed the residents about it. The supplier is said to have said that it would take responsibility and resolve the problems quickly. De Maar does not know whether the residents will receive a new pump. “That is primarily up to the installer. But if necessary, we will look at alternative options with them.”