Grant for heat pump to replace home with storage heaters

tamste

Just to clarify, the property does not have any wet system in place and relies solely on storage heaters with an immersion heated water tank.
So it would be a system from scratch whether that is a wet system or an air to heat pump system. I suppose with the latter, it could also work to cool the property as well? The property has 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen and 2 receptions, so I suppose one would need one blower unit per room, 10 in total?

redspike

I'm not sure if the grant covers air to air heating systems I looked at this when I had AC with a heat pump installed. Air source heat pump to water for radiators and or underfloor heating is covered though

Reed_Richards

Good things about air-to-air heat pumps is that they are more efficient than air to water heat pumps, they can cool as well as heat, and you don't need to install any pipes.  Bad things are that you don't get a grant for air-to-air heat pumps and I think you need \planning Permission if you install more than one unit.  For a bungalow the ideal would seem to be a whole-house system routed via the loft, but I'm not sure if that is feasible to retrofit.  

matt_drummer

You actually need planning permission for any heat pump that is not used solely for heating.

The rules are badly worded and I would think that if you could prove that your air to air heat pump was not used for cooling then it would be ok.

To have an indoor unit in each room you would need at least two multi split air to air systems. I have see systems with up to five indoor units.

I doubt you would put an indoor unit in a bathroom, there may be some risk of electric shock?

Gerry1

matt_drummer said:

I doubt you would put an indoor unit in a bathroom, there may be some risk of electric shock.

IIRC appliances such as washing machines can be installed in a bathroom, subject to certain precautions being taken such as the appliances and pipes all being connected via a common earth bond.

ArbitraryRandom

matt_drummer said:

You actually need planning permission for any heat pump that is not used solely for heating.

The rules are badly worded and I would think that if you could prove that your air to air heat pump was not used for cooling then it would be ok.

To have an indoor unit in each room you would need at least two multi split air to air systems. I have see systems with up to five indoor units.

I doubt you would put an indoor unit in a bathroom, there may be some risk of electric shock?

How can you prove that (given I believe most units come with the functionality)? 

Gerry1

ArbitraryRandom said:

matt_drummer said:

You actually need planning permission for any heat pump that is not used solely for heating.

The rules are badly worded and I would think that if you could prove that your air to air heat pump was not used for cooling then it would be ok.

To have an indoor unit in each room you would need at least two multi split air to air systems. I have see systems with up to five indoor units.

I doubt you would put an indoor unit in a bathroom, there may be some risk of electric shock?

How can you prove that (given I believe most units come with the functionality)?

Loads of fun if you use a wet radiator heat pump system for cooling...

matt_drummer

ArbitraryRandom said:

matt_drummer said:

You actually need planning permission for any heat pump that is not used solely for heating.

The rules are badly worded and I would think that if you could prove that your air to air heat pump was not used for cooling then it would be ok.

To have an indoor unit in each room you would need at least two multi split air to air systems. I have see systems with up to five indoor units.

I doubt you would put an indoor unit in a bathroom, there may be some risk of electric shock?

How can you prove that (given I believe most units come with the functionality)? 

From here

https://www.planningportal.co.uk/permission/common-projects/heat-pumps/planning-permission-air-source-heat-pump

Planning Permission: Air source heat pump

From 1 December 2011 the installation of an air source heat pump on domestic premises is considered to be permitted development, not needing an application for planning permission, provided ALL the limits and conditions listed below are met.These permitted development rights apply to the installation, alteration or replacement of an air source heat pump on a house or block of flats, or within the curtilage (garden or grounds) of a house or block of flats, including on a building within that curtilage. A block of flats must consist wholly of flats (e.g. should not also contain commercial premises).Limits to be met:Development is permitted only if the air source heat pump installation complies with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme Planning Standards (MCS 020) or equivalent standards. Read more about the scheme.The volume of the air source heat pump’s outdoor compressor unit (including housing) must not exceed 0.6 cubic metresOnly the first installation of an air source heat pump would be permitted development, and only if there is no existing wind turbine on a building or within the curtilage of that property. Additional wind turbines or air source heat pumps at the same property requires an application for planning permissionAll parts of the air source heat pump must be at least one metre from the property boundaryInstallations on pitched roofs are not permitted development. If installed on a flat roof all parts of the air source heat pump must be at least one metre from the external edge of that roofPermitted development rights do not apply for installations within the curtilage of a Listed Building or within a site designated as a Scheduled MonumentOn land within a Conservation Area or World Heritage Site the air source heat pump must not be installed on a wall or roof which fronts a highway or be nearer to any highway which bounds the property than any part of the buildingOn land that is not within a Conservation Area or World Heritage Site, the air source heat pump must not be installed on any part of a wall above the level of the ground floor storey if that wall fronts a highway.Please note: ‘permitted development’ rights may be removed through a planning condition, Article 4 Direction or other restriction.In addition, the following conditions must also be met. The air source heat pump must be:Used solely for heating purposesRemoved as soon as reasonably practicable when it is no longer needed for microgenerationSited, so far as is practicable, to minimise its effect on the external appearance of the building and its effect on the amenity of the area.You may wish to discuss with the Local Planning Authority for your area whether all of these limits and conditions will be met.



Do you think I made it up?

Air to air heat pumps used for cooling purposes always need planning permission, that doesn't mean that most domestic installations actually have planning permission or even applied for it.

How easy it would be to prove that whilst your air to air heat pump is capable of being used for cooling but you only use it for heating, I don't know.

A lot of air to water heat pump manufacturers produce models with a cooling function but I'm not sure how popular a choice they are in this country.

As @Gerry1 is suggesting, probably not the best idea.

Swipe

I installed two air to air heat pumps at my previous property without planning permission and no one batted an eyelid and they were there for 10 years.

QrizB

Swipe said:

I installed two air to air heat pumps at my previous property without planning permission and no one batted an eyelid and they were there for 10 years.

And that's fine, provided no-one complains.

But (having had to make a retrospective planning application a little while ago after someone objected to my new garden shed) if you have neighbours, it's a risk.