I have just got back from holiday where we stayed in a French house by the beach that had a heat pump.

The heat pump was in the back garden and seemed to be on a lot, and almost constantly in the evenings, making a low-level but intrusive fan sound like the ducts that you get at the back of a restaurant.

It was really quite annoying if you were sat outside in the daytime when it was on, but even more so having the constant hum of the fan while eating dinner or sitting out in the evening. 

I am probably more sensitive to noise that most people but when I was hoping to hear the sound of the sea and could instead hear a droning fan, it drove me mad

I had been considering a heat pump at home, but this has put me off. Are all heat pumps noisy? Is there anything you can do to minimise it? LS

Sam Barker of This is Money replies: Heat pumps have clear benefits when it comes to producing greener electricity. But even the most fervent heat pump enthusiast must admit that they do have some potential drawbacks, and one is noise.

Technically, I mean noise plus location. The average combi boiler is about as loud as the hum of a typical heat pump - around 40 to 60 dB. 

At the lower end of the scale that is about the volume of birdsong, or a microwave, and at the upper end of the scale is as loud as a typical conversation.

The issue is that most boilers are located in out-of-the-way locations like an airing cupboard, whereas air source heat pumps tend to be located on the exterior walls of houses.

That can mean that the perceived noise of heat pumps can be more of a nuisance, depending on where you are relative to the pump. 

That noise can also get louder if a heat pump is not maintained to a proper standard, or during cold weather when they have to work harder.

If a heat pump is located near a bedroom window, for example, it could become quite an intrusive noise. 

Alternatively, if you sit outside near where the heat pump is, you will undoubtedly notice it.

As you found on your holiday, the human ear can find low humming noises quite noticeable - and quite annoying.

The average air source heat pump produces sound in the 50-100Hz range, slap bang in the middle of the bass frequency range, which tends to carry further. 

Think of how you can hear the bass of a live band even at a distance, or how the low rumble of a large idling diesel engine carries further than other engine noises.

UK law says that the volume of a heat pump cannot be more than 42dB at the boundary of the property it is installed in.

Councils do get noise complaints about heat pumps, although these are currently rare.

Retirement group Saga found this month that half of the councils it surveyed (124) had zero noise complaints, while slightly less than half (117) received between one and 10. Only nine of that 117 had noise complaints about heat pumps reach double figures.

It is fair to assume that heat pump noise complaints will rise, as the Government wants UK homes to be fitting 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028.

It is clear to everyone that the Government that meeting this target is fairly unlikely, as there were only 55,000 heat pumps fitted last year.

But still, more heat pumps means more noise complaints. So if you are looking at getting a heat pump, there are some measures you can take to ensure it doesn't annoy you or your neighbours.

How can you make your heat pump quieter?  

The obvious solution is to site the external unit of the air source heat pump somewhere where it won't be annoying.

Another obvious measure is to buy a quieter heat pump. The industry is working to bring out quieter units, but currently none of the top five heat pump firms make devices quieter than 42dB, according to Government figures. 

That means that, realistically, any heat pump you get will make sound equivalent to a tweeting bird, which could be enough to be noticeable.

A ground source heat pump will be quieter, but also more expensive to install, and many properties do not have the necessary outside space required.

A more effective but costly option is to get acoustic proofing around the external heat pump unit. 

This will lower the sound it makes to the outside world, but getting this installed can cost north of £1,000 to do properly, and will increase the size footprint that the heat pump takes up.

Hopefully this helps put the volume of heat pumps into perspective, and you can draw the appropriate conclusions for you and your living situation.