r/ukheatpumps

Hoping to get some advice/thoughts on heating upgrade plans.

I live in a frankly insane house 17c cottage with 4 extensions done in various decades since the 1950's with different levels of insulation etc throughout. Heat loss calcs have come back between 15k-16k.

I've been quoted around 15-16k (-9k grant) for air to water systems. That's typically using a grant heat pump for context.

I've also seperately had a quote to do the 4 upstairs rooms with air-air for aircon (as its all room in roof and has been a furnace in the heatwaves we've had) those were 5-6k for a mitsubishi 4 way split.

Now part of me is considering getting another 4 air to airs for the downstairs using them for heating getting rid of the wet system entirely and having an electric hot water tank of some kind.

I figure it should be roughly the same cost either way 7k+6k for water + air vs 6k x2 +2kish for HW? for air-air.

My quesions are;

is there any major risks considerations for going pure air-air? Is this a viable idea?

Would doing air to air like im planning qualify for the 2.5k grant?

Lastly do those quotes seem reasonable for a 16/17kw air-water and for the air to air system?

Thanks if you read all that!

Can we switch it off without it building up mould? Would it struggle if we open the windows/doors at the end of the day to refresh the air in the house? Anyone got the same system? Thanks!

We have two installer surveys booked over the next couple weeks due to having issues with our existing oil system which will cost us at least 6.5k. The grant is now going up to £9000 as we are off grid, is there any world where we could possibly get an air source heat pump installed for that do you think? 3 bed semi detached. Existing heat tank downstairs next to our oil Aga boiler

This article was not written by me but perfectly matches my user experience. The writer shows the template on how Agile can be run very cheaply. Our family has co-evolved the exact same strategies and our average 12-month price (16p/kWh) matches.

We have the same heat-pump (Daikin) again installed by Octopus but our operational SCOP is slightly better than the author here.

As more and more wind/solar is rolled out we will only see more drastic price differences between wholesale peak and off-peak rates. This makes fixed price deals harder and harder to administer. Either the fixed price rate is high or the energy retailer holds a lot of risk.

I'm yet to hear good reasons why the adoption rates for time-of-use tariffs aren't higher. Normally something consistently providing a ~40% cost saving would be popular even if there are sporadic risks.

Had an air source heat pump and 15 new radiators fitted in April. The guy who came to do the survey asked me twice if I had my partners permission to have the install done, which was a personal gripe but apparently the beginning of much worse problems.

Install which should have taken one week took 2, so that was 2 weeks without hot water, with 2 small kids. Not a lot of fun but we managed.

Then one of the radiators installed was faulty and didn't work from the start, needed replacing. That happened over 4 weeks later. Luckily the rest worked and didn't really need the heating on.

The radiators downstairs weren't getting very warm, the engineers tried rebalancing but he said the pipes going to the radiators were too narrow. Bearing in mind they have known the size of the pipes since the survey, and the size of the radiators needed. Surely that should have been taken into consideration.

Since beginning of May, the engineer has been saying he will speak to his manager to see what they can do. I've messaged his several times and called british gas themselves and 2 months later, he has now said his manager isn't around and basically it's not his problem any more and good luck. British Gas keep saying they will contact the manager but nothing has happened and I'm ringing them every week with the same response. I've put a complaint in through British gas and will be putting one in with ofgem. So much for their warm home guarantee. I'm stressed and sad and worried my home won't be warm in winter.

As per the title. Got a survey booked for a heat pump on the 13th. Hopefully we will discuss both options for air source and ground source heat pump to replace my oil boiler. What questions should i be asking the surveyor and what qualifications should i be maing sure they have?

Hi folks, 330m2 house, 1980 build with various upgrades over the years including blown cavity filling, loft roll, loft extension with 100mm celotex everywhere, UFH through half of downstairs with 50mm celotex below..

I've had 3 heat losses done now; a HeatGeek trained installer 11.5kw (proposed 12/13kw Ecoden @ £14k total), local installer 12.2kw (proposed Grant 12kw @ £11k total), Octopus 13.9kw (still haven't quoted due to complexities of the install).

Heat losses were done to 21c (HG) 19c (local) and I'm not sure with Octopus at -3 outside. Flow temps 55c (HG), 48c (local installer) and 50c (Octopus).

I think we are going to go with the local installer and the Grant Aerona R290 12kw. We are right on the cusp re heat loss, but I really don't want to oversize and would rather add more insulation I think if I have any problems. Q1- Is this a sensible approach? Or am I risking a cold house?

On buffers, they've offered 50/75 and 100. I've asked for as small as possible. At 50l we are right on the limit for minimum volume when all zones are closed Q2- Should I do 50 or 75L buffer?

Zoning - We are currently 3 UFH (downstairs) and 2 heating zones (down and up). All radiators have TRVs. Q3- Should I go one big open zone, or keep the zoning. Installers' views have differed on this.

Includes a new 300L cylinder. I’ve got a couple rad changes to do myself.

Many thanks for the help!!

Hi,

I’ve changed my mind from changing my new build gas boiler to an ASHP. I’m looking at air-to-air and seeking a solution for hot water.

Does anyone have experience of this in North East England? I know MCS certification may happen later this year and more suppliers may come onboard but I’ve struggled to make much progress.

I have had a site survey by Durham Air Con, who were great but weren’t so sure on hot water solutions.

I’m being realistic to have this ready for Summer 2027 but would like to get things moving if possible and an idea of cost.

My main pull for removing the gas is for an all-in-one solution to save on the standing charge and to go fully green but I appreciate the more cost effective option may be single or split unit AC and keep the boiler.

Any advice would be gratefully appreciated.

I’ve been looking around at a few places for a quote for a 3:1 multisplit and costing, wondered if anyone else has done the same thing?

I’ve been quoted £6575 from one place, waiting for others… seems a bit steep to me… any advice?

Hi, I’m looking to install an A2A heat pump with multi split units. The location on the side of my house ticks all the boxes for permitted development rights. However, I’m having trouble finding an MCS accredited installer. How do I demonstrate that an installation falls under permitted development rights without one?

Detached three bedroom house built in 2017.

Definitely a newbie question!

Thinking of getting heat pump through HeatGeeks and got excellent quote but still confused as to the ongoing costs. Got solar and battery and hoping to switch from oil heating but it appears that the ongoing costs might be pretty high against my present Octopus Intelligent Go tariff. Will the heat pump drain the battery and increase my peak electricity?

Anyone know where to get the Midea PortaSplit in the UK?** **Seems like it’s impossible now after the heatwave

Just had my Daikin ASHP installed by Octopus and they are offering a service plan for £9 per month = £108 per year for an annual service.

From a quick trawl of the internet, the cheapest available independent heat pump service round here seems to be about £150, and the average seems to be more like £200+

Is there any reason I shouldn't go with Octopus for the service plan?