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Why heat
pumps are
much more
than hot air
They’re a win for both your wallet and the environment. And with grants of up to £7,500 available through the government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme, now might be the time to say goodbye to gas
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he cold nights are here and everyone wants to stay warm without spending a fortune. And if you can source your energy while reducing emissions, all the better.
That’s why heat pumps have become such a hot topic at the moment.
Not only are they clean and green, guaranteeing you stay snug and get to feel good about it, but now you can even get a healthy £7,500 grant towards having one installed, thanks to the government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme. Despite this, there’s still a lack of awareness and plenty of misinformation about heat pumps, how they work – and how they are a real positive when it comes to increasing sustainability and reaching the UK’s net zero targets.
A spring 2023 government report found 53 per cent of us admitted to knowing hardly anything or nothing about ground source heat pumps – even though they can save consumers money in the long term, will reduce reliance on fossil fuels like oil and gas, and help decarbonise the country’s energy emissions. It’s a situation that needs to change, and fast, if we are going to help save the environment.
In 2022, the UK’s housing accounted for 17 per cent of the nation’s total carbon dioxide emissions. It’s a figure that’s falling, but progress is being slowed by Britain’s draughty and ageing housing stock (about 59 per cent, or 13 million homes, are rated D or below for energy performance), plus widespread use of natural gas for heating and cooking.
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“Your heat pump will provide the warmth and comfort you need in your home and contribute to reducing carbon emissions”
Thankfully, the government has ambitious plans to turn things around – and heat pumps, installed with the help of grants, will help play a big part. The ambition is to phase out the installation of new natural gas boilers from 2035, to ensure that by 2050 almost all heating systems in use will
be low carbon.
“To decarbonise the UK’s 28 million homes, we need to dramatically accelerate improving home energy efficiency and the adoption of clean heat technologies such as heat pumps,” says Richard Halsey, innovation director at the green energy specialist Energy Systems Catapult.
“Householders considering making the switch to a heat pump should
rest assured that if sized and integrated correctly – by an accredited installer – and correctly operated, their heat pump will provide the warmth and comfort they need in their home and contribute to
reducing carbon emissions.”
Now, with a generous government subsidy scheme in England and Wales offering £7,500 towards installation, you could be running a heat pump for no more than the cost of upgrading an old and inefficient boiler.
“In the end I only had to pay about half of what I expected and had put to one side, so that was nice. It’s really efficient”
Essentially, a heat pump makes use of the available heat in the ground or air surrounding a property, then raises its temperature for use in
the home.
The heat pump captures thermal energy from outside then moves it inside, boosting it using electricity. The amount of electrical energy used to power the system is much less than the heat energy delivered to your home, hence it is super-efficient, as well as being more sustainable. In a well-insulated property, running costs are comparable with existing gas boiler systems, and can even be cheaper with other measures in place such as solar panels.
So, how do heat pumps work?
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1. Air from outside enters a heat exchanger (evaporator), where refrigerant fluid (similar to that used in fridges) circulates through pipes.
2. The refrigerant is very cold, so it can absorb heat from the air even at minus 20C. The heat energy turns it into a gas.
3. An electrically powered compressor ups the pressure, further raising the vapour temperature.
4. This heat is transferred to water via a heat exchanger, for use in heaters, radiators and hot water system.
5. As it loses heat, the refrigerant turns back to liquid. This liquid will expand and cool so the cycle can start again.
The two most common types are air source heat pumps (ASHP) and ground source heat pumps (GSHP). Both extract heat from outside before transferring it to water, which heats your rooms via radiators or underfloor heating. They also heat up a hot-water cylinder – so you can still enjoy those long hot baths! The only difference is that air source heat pumps take their heat from the air, while ground source heat pumps extract it from a little below ground – otherwise the process is the same. Air source heat pumps are generally more popular because they are easier and quicker to install, and require less outside space. Both types are usually positioned outside your home.
What types of heat pump are there?
Heat pumps can be fitted into just about any type of property, no matter what age. In fact they are an effective retrofit option for older buildings that are traditionally considered harder to heat. Heat pumps are already widely used in Norway and Sweden and cope admirably with their colder climate, and are particularly useful for those living off the grid.
“We know that heat pumps work,” says Catapult’s Halsey. “The Electrification of Heat Demonstration project put to bed the notion that heat pumps do not work in UK homes. The findings point to the opposite: heat pumps work in a wide variety of housing archetypes, are three times more efficient than gas boilers, and can work effectively even in cold weather conditions.”
Is my home suitable?
Modern heat pumps are more compact and make about as much noise as a refrigerator. Any noise is from the pump’s fan pulling air into the system and unlikely to be heard indoors, only outside when it’s actively working.
But are they noisy?
If you want to move to cheaper, greener and more sustainable energy, the good news is that there are grants available to help you. In May 2022, the government launched the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, a £450 million initiative to help homes in England and Wales move from traditional gas boilers to heat pumps, with funding confirmed until March 31, 2025.
Then, last month (October 2023) the grants were increased to £7,500 for air source and ground source heat pumps, with a £5,000 subsidy for biomass boilers. The cost of installation is falling as heat pumps become more popular. With the government grant taken into account, you could pay as little as £500 when installing an ASHP – that’s comparable to the price of a gas boiler, and a heat pump could last up to twice as long.
Don’t miss out:
grants for heat pumps
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is open to many homeowners who are making changes to their heating system, but it’s important to check.
To fit the criteria, your property must be a home or small non-domestic building with a valid energy performance certificate and no outstanding recommendations for loft or cavity wall insulation. New-build homes and social housing are not eligible but self-build properties are, as are rental tenancies and second homes.
The installation must be for the replacement of an existing oil or gas boiler, or an electric heating system such as storage or panel heaters. Funding is not intended for already existing low-carbon heat systems.
Am I eligible?
First you need to check that your home is eligible. Then it’s a straightforward process, because the application is handled by the installer on your behalf.
Just make sure the installer you choose is certified by the Microgeneration Certification System (MCS), a nationally recognised standards organisation that provides assurance of the quality of the product and competence of the installer.
Once the process is under way, your final quote will show the discount, and the installer will be able to redeem the voucher and will receive the grant following installation and commissioning checks.
You’ve got me interested – how do I apply?
Property solicitor Steffi Eschenburg, 44, lives in Great Horwood, Buckinghamshire, with her 12-year-old son. When she bought her new-build bungalow in January she was delighted to find an air source heat pump already installed. Living in a sustainable, budget-friendly home that’s ready for the future is important to her, and it helped sell the house to her as their future home.
“My family live in Germany and heat pumps are everywhere,” Steffi says. “I was impressed that the house came with one. It’s also really well insulated.
“I’ve done one winter, through summer and now going back into winter. I was surprised by my bills. I thought, if I’ve only got electricity it’s going to hit me really hard. In the end I only had to pay about half of what I expected and had put to one side, so that was really nice. It’s really efficient. I’m looking at about £130 a month this winter.”
Steffi has found the adjustment from a traditional boiler to a heat pump seamless. “The radiators heat up the house really nicely.”
Another positive is that she no longer relies on fossil fuels. “Pumps will become compulsory but don’t just do it for that reason, do it for the environment,” she adds. “From a safety point of view, I prefer not having gas in the house.”
“My energy bill has halved”
When Paul Bryant, 41, and his wife Silvia, 40, spent their first winter in their new home deep in the Lincolnshire countryside shivering through layers of jumpers, they realised they needed to upgrade their heating system.
“It was the winter of 2021/22, and it was pretty cold. Lying in bed at night, we could see our breath,” says Paul, the editor of a property website. “We are so rural we aren’t on the mains gas supply – we relied on oil deliveries and a big, smelly tank in the garden for energy. All this palaver and we weren’t even warm!
“So, after some research, we decided to get a heat pump – the discount through the government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme was definitely a motivation.”
Paul joined a Facebook group where people shared stories about their heat pumps and realised that, as the technology is so new, good installation was key.
“We looked into installers and decided on a company that was really knowledgeable and advised us on the right model for us,” Paul says. “And getting the Boiler Upgrade Scheme discount was so easy – the installer applied and simply deducted the discount from our bill.”
In September 2022, Paul and Silvia’s old oil boiler made way for a brand new heat pump, allowing them to bask in new-found warmth.
“In the depths of winter when it was minus 2 outside and everything was freezing, the house was still warm,” Paul says. “It’s economical and we’re really impressed.”
“Getting the discount was easy”
Daksha Modha, 64, a retired credit controller, and husband, Nick, 65, a grounds maintenance company owner, live in Mill Hill, north London. They opted for a heat pump when their old boiler needed replacing.
The Modhas had heard about the government’s initiative to phase out boilers and replace them with home heat pumps and were keen to learn more.
Daksha explains: “We were at a design show and they had a stand about heat pumps. They explained everything, how the heat pump worked, and it sounded really good.
“We thought, if we do go for a traditional boiler again, we will still need to replace it anyway in a few years’ time. So we said, let’s go for the heat pump instead.”
Now they love the fact they have future-proofed their home as well as doing their bit for the environment. “The house is cosy and warm,” says Daksha. “We had solar panels fitted around the same time and it works well with them.
“Our bills have stayed the same, even though energy prices have gone up. I would recommend it to everybody.”
“We’ve future-proofed our home”
For more information about heat pumps, go to
gov.uk/energy-efficient-home
£7,500
Click to read Steffi’s story
Click to read Paul’s story
Click to read Daksha’s story
“I would recommend it to everybody”
“Getting the discount was so easy”
“The radiators heat up the house nicely”
Read Steffi’s story
Read Paul’s story
Read Daksha’s story
Case studies
How a heat pump could be a great addition to your home