Heat pump to replace boiler

[NCTDN]

We need to replace our boiler as it's 25 years old and totally inefficient.
I know there's old threads about heat pumps but has anyone got one recently?

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Updated by MNHQ
Landed on this page in search of heat pump advice? Find our guide to installing a heat pump in your UK home here. HTH!

Should add our heat pump does water and heat. We already had an electric hob so no gas which is far preferable in my view.

We are west coast of Scotland and house warm down to temperatures of -7c last winter with no issues. And cheaper than gas boiler would have been.

@GasPanic
*This is the biggest problem I have with heat pumps. They are not plug and play. When people want to replace their heating system they just want something that is guaranteed to work and not cost too much more than what they currently have.

But the sheer number of factors involved with trying to establish one will work well in your property or not means you have to be something of an expert to get close to being confident that it will. Or trust the installers. Who to date have been somewhat unreliable in making sure they are only fitted where they will really work (to be fair they are getting better).*

This is an excellent point. We love our ashp so far but have only got to this point through DH’s unrelenting research, maths, spreadsheets and extended discussions with the (excellent and recommended by a mnetter) installer. Even then it’s not yet clear it will save us much money despite being far more carbon friendly. (The total outlay was several thousand on top of the grant, and this is a well insulated modern house)

You just can’t expect most families to be as motivated to get one as my dh. Even our installer agrees that he is going to have to move away from retrofits as they are so complex, compared with refurbs and newbuilds which are far easier.

The idea that we will all do this in our millions is for the birds, frankly. But for those willing to do the research and are committed, I’d recommend.

Had a long conversation with someone from Octopus this morning about it all. Although their upcoming Cosy Heat Pumps might make installation more affordable if there are still grants available for them, they are not necessarily better than Daikin as they are lower powered. So I was told that while a Cosy might be suitable, Daikin could be equally suitable and if we apply now we can secure a government grant, which might not be the case next year.

Also they have been installing Daikin for a long time so have a good experience of how they work in different types of houses, whereas the Cosy is a new product that has not been tested on mass yet.

So for £2550 for Daikin, including hot water tank, which incidentally I was told is pressurised, and any required replacement radiators, does seem like a good option. Considering our boiler is 12 years old and our 3 storey terraced house pretty well insulated, I think we might go forward with requesting a home survey. They will also cap the gas for free and disconnect the meter.

We need to pay a £500 deposit which is fully refundable at any point up to 24 hours before installation. I was told survey would be late November and installation late Feb/ Early March and we would be communicated full details of system design plans throughout the process and could withdraw at any time. Also told our 10mm micropore pipe is suitable, but 8mm isn't. They thought a 12 year old house that is 3 storey mid terraced was very suitable for the system. The house is also long and narrow, so most of the walls are at the sides adjacent to other houses, which helps with insulation. And living room and bedroom on the middle floor stay warmest, which is where we spend lots of time.

If it were another installer I might be more hesitant, but I trust Octopus's reputation in the industry so think we might go to the next stage of paying a deposit and booking the home survey.

Sounds like good news.

Do they do a power flush on the existing radiator system ? That should ensure any blockages are removed and you get max flow rate. TBH radiator replacement isn't a massive cost anyway (the pipework is a different matter). Sometimes they do get the size wrong - for example my newish build had a far too small radiator in the master bedroom which I transferred to a double for about £100. May be worth just checking in advance that your radiators are sized correctly because if one is marginal now it may need replacing when/if you transfer. If you have single radiators now it will be easy to change for double and maintain the footprint.

Have you thought about where it will be sited/footprint ? I guess on a terrace it will have to be on the outside rear wall. Does the water tank have to be near this and where will it be sited as it will be quite big ? Do they do a noise spec for the pump ?

Same here. Even if it is suitable for your house and your part of the country, and cost nothing to install, you really need solar as well to keep the running costs down. Our plumber told us last time he came he'd just taken out a heat pump and installed a gas boiler for one of his clients who had given up on the heat pump as a bad job.

@Netcam (and others interested) for more specific advice I would recommend the facebook group Heat Pumps UK and Ireland which is really useful. Some actual installers on there who know what they're talking about. There is a lot of recent chat there about the new Octopus deals in particular. People are mostly quite positive.

I'm quite dubious about them paying for replacement radiators if they are required - this cost a lot for us - but willing to be proven wrong on this and you might not need then anyway. Our house is 16 years old, and is sufficiently well insulated.

I had a 5kw Vaillant Aerotherm air source heat pump fitted last year.

It has been great. House was consistently pleasant temperature all last winter, no fiddling with controls and being too hot or too cold.

Total elec bill so far this year is £689 (I don't have any gas at all any more as replaced hob with induction as well). £172 of that was January when it was both cold and I worked from home for the whole month after breaking my ankle so was at home all the time!

Small mid 1980s house with 2 and a half bedrooms. Have replaced original single glazing.

It's not the most beautiful thing to look at but it works really well.

Thanks, yes, we are imagining it will go on the back wall of the house behind the kitchen diner. Our ground floor is only a kitchen/diner and garage. The hot water tank would need to go in the kitchen where the fridge freezer currently is. The fridge freezer would need to move to where an existing radiator is, so a new radiator would need putting in elsewhere. We are not too bothered about the kitchen being messed around with as the 12 year old cheap units that were installed by the builder are not in great condition anymore and we intend to replace them in a few years.

Thanks, I've joined.