Octopus Heat Pumps

QrizB

Netexporter said:

I can only dream of getting a quote from Octopus for solar or a heat pump.

Have you tried the "quote me" link?

https://octopus.energy/order/heat-pump/details/new-customer/

Reed_Richards

Screwdriva said:

With a SCOP of 3 or below, it’s going to be difficult for end users to save £ when compared to an efficient gas setup. 

Yes, you'll just be doing your little bit to save civilization by creating less CO2 when running your heating.

Netexporter

QrizB said:

Netexporter said:

I can only dream of getting a quote from Octopus for solar or a heat pump.

Have you tried the "quote me" link?

https://octopus.energy/order/heat-pump/details/new-customer/

Yes, frequently. They don't do Wales. I was mildly shocked to find that you can't even get a quote in Cardiff. I live in the middle of nowhere in middlest Mid-Wales, so I can understand it, to an extent. Took nearly a year to get my smart meter fitted because the nearest installers are in Swansea.

mickyduck55

Reed_Richards said:

Screwdriva said:

With a SCOP of 3 or below, it’s going to be difficult for end users to save £ when compared to an efficient gas setup. 

Yes, you'll just be doing your little bit to save civilization by creating less CO2 when running your heating.

No hard data but with my usage removing the gas standing charge will help, last year I used very little gas as I have an ASHP / AC in my living area.  WHEN my full ASHP heating is installed I will need to replace my gas hob with electric so yes some cost and Im a low user so no ££ savings.  I like to think Im helping to save the planet although short of a nuclear war despite all we do it will probably outlast me 

1961Nick

Screwdriva said:

1961Nick said:

From a source close the project, it's around 3 unless you run them at 70C when it's likely to be significantly lower.

With a SCOP of 3 or below, it’s going to be difficult for end users to save £ when compared to an efficient gas setup. 

The source did suggest that there will be smart tariffs tailored for Octopus heat pumps & that should achieve parity with the cost of gas heating.

1961Nick

shinytop said:

Screwdriva said:

Does anyone have actual real world SCOP numbers for any Octopus heat pump installation?

Doubtful.  Real world SCOP needs a whole year of measurement and there aren't many installed that long. At least I don't think there are...

Octopus have been building test houses (with varying levels of insulation) inside a warehouse to test their heat pumps. They must know the SCOP but I'm guessing it's not good enough to make a song & dance about. They do have the capability to overcome that with smart controls & smart tariffs though.

Screwdriva

1961Nick said:

The source did suggest that there will be smart tariffs tailored for Octopus heat pumps & that should achieve parity with the cost of gas heating.

Yes, I'm aware of the ambition. It's just that the Heat Geek elite installers I know claim that the Daikin pumps Octopus currently install cost more to run than gas to heat the home. Could it be them smearing the competition? Sure. But I'd like to know end user SCOP numbers to corroberate that myself. 

I'm not 100% convinced that chasing lower electricity tariffs (vs. higher installation SCOP) is the right approach with heat pumps. What if Octopus goes belly up one day (God forbid!)?

Reed_Richards

Not too long ago, anyone who was not on a suitably long fixed dal ended up on the same SVT (okay slightly different from region to region but pretty much the same).  This made it easy to compare the running cost of a heat pump on electricity with a gas boiler and if your heat pump could achieve a SCOP of 3 then the cost of either were very close.  Now there are some cheap deals for gas and also for electricity, although in the latter case they can be very complicated with different prices at different times.  Now it's very difficult to compare running costs without making a lot of assumptions which may be right for John D. but wrong for Richard R.  

Martyn1981

mickyduck55 said:

Reed_Richards said:

Screwdriva said:

With a SCOP of 3 or below, it’s going to be difficult for end users to save £ when compared to an efficient gas setup. 

Yes, you'll just be doing your little bit to save civilization by creating less CO2 when running your heating.

No hard data but with my usage removing the gas standing charge will help, last year I used very little gas as I have an ASHP / AC in my living area.  WHEN my full ASHP heating is installed I will need to replace my gas hob with electric so yes some cost and Im a low user so no ££ savings.  I like to think Im helping to save the planet although short of a nuclear war despite all we do it will probably outlast me 

Similar here, gas demand is low, but including the ~£100 standing charge for gas (we'd have to replace the gas oven), I think we'd work out better.

Very much planning in the next year or two to get a small PV expansion, and batteries. Hopefully that would allow us to use cheap rate leccy for most of the ASHP heating Dec-Feb, and a growing contribution from PV during the other heating months.

A big factor will be what level leccy prices fall back to over the next 2-3yrs as gas prices and shortfalls ease, as Europe quickly reduces its demand. Plus of course what gas prices go back to.

Obviously both PV and batts aren't free, but using them for more purposes all helps.

Exiled_Tyke

I've just been quoted £6k by Octopus after the gov grant (including replacement of radiators where necessary) . 

A factor for me is what kind of tariff to take. In summer it would be easy to stick to a BEV tariff and heat water at night but in winter it all gets more complicated.