Before investing in a new heating system it’s important to understand if you should buy an air source heat pump.
The government has recently announced a £5000 grant for homeowners to help them replace gas boilers with low-carbon heat pumps.
Heat pumps are a more cost-efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to gas boilers as a way to heat homes and buildings in general.
Because they are extracting heat from the environment – which they can do even at low outside temperatures – they produce around three times the energy they use, making them much more efficient than a gas boiler.
Click here to read our blog ‘What is an Air Source Heat Pump and how do they work?’
What Heat Pump Grants Are Available?
The Government is yet to announce precise details of how to apply for the grant, which will be available to homeowners in England and Wales from next April.
Currently, an air source heat pump costs between £6,000 and £18,000, depending on the type of the pump and the size of a property.
The Government will encourage everyone whose boiler needs replacing to switch over to heat pumps, with £5,000 given to each household that chooses to. There will be no requirement for people with working boilers to make the switch.
There is also the Renewable Heat Incentive which allows homeowners to apply for funding towards ASHP, as well as biomass boilers, solar water heating and other heat pumps.
However, before installation, it is important to understand if your house is suitable for a heat pump. Otherwise, it can actually end up costing you more than your current gas boiler and can be more environmentally damaging.
How Could it Cost Me More Money?
While it’s great that steps are being taken towards greener production of energy, the answer is not always as straightforward as it seems. If you install a heat pump into a house that is not airtight and is uninsulated it can actually produce more CO2 per square meter than a gas boiler.
This is because an ASHP uses electricity to operate, which means that if your home is not insulated or airtight it’s harder for the heat generated to be retained. This means the ASHP must work harder and use more electricity to get your home to a desired temperate and then keep it there. If this were the case your energy bills could increase, especially with current energy price rises.
So, Should I Install a Heat Pump?
We are not saying that you should not install heat pumps, through government grants or otherwise. We are simply stating that it is important to understand if your home is ready for one, and if not, what to do about it.
Our qualified energy assessors and retrofit assessors work on multiple retrofit schemes and would be happy to answer any technical questions for you. We offer three levels of Home Energy Survey to help homeowners get a better understanding of the energy use of their home, how to reduce this, improve their home’s environmental impact, and save money on their bills.
We combine our Thermal Imaging, Air Testing, Ventilation Testing, and Retrofit Assessment services to provide you with an overview of where the main sources of heat loss are occurring in your home as well as expert advice on how to improve these issues.
Contact us to find out more about our Home Energy Survey and how it could help you.
Keep Informed
Keep your energy efficiency knowledge up to date with news and expert tips delivered straight to your inbox.
"*" indicates required fields