Heat pumps as a landlord

Bluebell1000

The gas boiler in our rental property is still just working but having had it checked and serviced today, our engineer reckons it won't manage another year*. We're getting a quote for a replacement gas boiler, but I was wondering about a heat pump instead (this would mean no gas connection required). Am I correct in my understanding that landlords also qualify for the £7500 grant, and it won't cause us a problem if we then want a heat pump for our own home, we could  get the grant for our house too? Are there any other potential sources of funding that it's worth us checking (EPC of C already)?

*We trust his opinion on this, it's now at least 16 years old and I was expecting to replace it in the near future.

Keep_pedalling

The grant is available for any property you own providing you are replacing a fossil fuel system, so you can get it for your rental property and your own home. 

Meatballs

Check mortgage provider, Barclays offer £2000 grant

Bluebell1000

Meatballs said:

Check mortgage provider, Barclays offer £2000 grant

Skipton, looks like it's just a free EPC unfortunately. Our mortgage ends at the end of 2024, so that's probably pushing it too far for us to wait and switch to a provider that offers something towards a heat pump. Worth considering for our own house though, we'll see if there's similar schemes around in a couple of years!

Screwdriva

Bluebell1000 said:

The gas boiler in our rental property is still just working but having had it checked and serviced today, our engineer reckons it won't manage another year*. We're getting a quote for a replacement gas boiler, but I was wondering about a heat pump instead (this would mean no gas connection required). Am I correct in my understanding that landlords also qualify for the £7500 grant, and it won't cause us a problem if we then want a heat pump for our own home, we could  get the grant for our house too? Are there any other potential sources of funding that it's worth us checking (EPC of C already)?

*We trust his opinion on this, it's now at least 16 years old and I was expecting to replace it in the near future.

Recommend attempting to achieve a higher EPC score. Octopus Energy have been known to quote to install a heat pump + indirect water cylinder + K22 radiators all for less than the cost of a new installed boiler (under £3K on occasion). But the lowest quotes are offered to EPC A and B homes predominantly. 

Bluebell1000

Screwdriva said:

Bluebell1000 said:

The gas boiler in our rental property is still just working but having had it checked and serviced today, our engineer reckons it won't manage another year*. We're getting a quote for a replacement gas boiler, but I was wondering about a heat pump instead (this would mean no gas connection required). Am I correct in my understanding that landlords also qualify for the £7500 grant, and it won't cause us a problem if we then want a heat pump for our own home, we could  get the grant for our house too? Are there any other potential sources of funding that it's worth us checking (EPC of C already)?

*We trust his opinion on this, it's now at least 16 years old and I was expecting to replace it in the near future.

Recommend attempting to achieve a higher EPC score. Octopus Energy have been known to quote to install a heat pump + indirect water cylinder + K22 radiators all for less than the cost of a new installed boiler (under £3K on occasion). But the lowest quotes are offered to EPC A and B homes predominantly. 

It's only just a C (69) so I'm not sure whether we can up that. Might be able to change a few light bulbs, but that's about it I think. The EPC recommends spending a small fortune on floor insulation (still a C), solar water heating (still a C) and solar panels (just moves into a band . Um... that was supposed to be a B, haha. House is 1940s with a 2 storey extension from 8 years ago. I presume that's why there's 2 sets of 'wall'. 

Feature	Description	Rating
Wall	Cavity wall, filled cavity	Average
Wall	Cavity wall, as built, insulated (assumed)	Very good
Roof	Pitched, 350 mm loft insulation	Very good
Window	Fully double glazed	Good
Main heating	Boiler and radiators, mains gas	Good
Main heating control	Programmer, room thermostat and TRVs	Good
Hot water	From main system	Good
Lighting	Low energy lighting in 86% of fixed outlets	Very good
Floor	Solid, no insulation (assumed)	N/A
Floor	Solid, insulated (assumed)	N/A
Secondary heating	Room heaters, mains gas	N/A

QrizB

Bluebell1000 said:

*We trust his opinion on this, it's now at least 16 years old and I was expecting to replace it in the near future.

Plug your details in here, you'll get a no-obligation quote subject to survey:

https://octopus.energy/get-a-heat-pump/

They might follow up with an email or two, but (in my experience) a polite reply "sorry, I'm not in a position to go ahead" will stop any further contact.

Screwdriva

Bluebell1000 said:

It's only just a C (69) so I'm not sure whether we can up that. Might be able to change a few light bulbs, but that's about it I think. The EPC recommends spending a small fortune on floor insulation (still a C), solar water heating (still a C) and solar panels (just moves into a band . Um... that was supposed to be a B, haha. House is 1940s with a 2 storey extension from 8 years ago. I presume that's why there's 2 sets of 'wall'. 

Ironically, the easiest way to achieve the higher rating is Solar PV.  Octopus will still install a heat pump for you but their quotes are lowest for households with the top two EPC scores, so the mortgage provider and PV may, in a way, subsidize your heat pump. 

Sadly, fixtures like light bulbs are not factored into EPC score calculations.

Bluebell1000

Screwdriva said:

Bluebell1000 said:

It's only just a C (69) so I'm not sure whether we can up that. Might be able to change a few light bulbs, but that's about it I think. The EPC recommends spending a small fortune on floor insulation (still a C), solar water heating (still a C) and solar panels (just moves into a band . Um... that was supposed to be a B, haha. House is 1940s with a 2 storey extension from 8 years ago. I presume that's why there's 2 sets of 'wall'. 

Ironically, the easiest way to achieve the higher rating is Solar PV.  Octopus will still install a heat pump for you but their quotes are lowest for households with the top two EPC scores, so the mortgage provider and PV may, in a way, subsidize your heat pump. 

Sadly, fixtures like light bulbs are not factored into EPC score calculations.

Well, I guess that's good news for our own house since we do have solar panels here! We've not had an EPC since they were fitted, but I'd hope we are in B territory with that one at least. 

Bluebell1000

Octopus 🐙 EON and BG won't quote. Not sure if the house is too big or if they're not in our area (4 bed)! I've messaged a local installer, but ultimately I think it'll come down to cost. New gas boiler is £2750...

Keep_pedalling

Screwdriva said:

Bluebell1000 said:

The gas boiler in our rental property is still just working but having had it checked and serviced today, our engineer reckons it won't manage another year*. We're getting a quote for a replacement gas boiler, but I was wondering about a heat pump instead (this would mean no gas connection required). Am I correct in my understanding that landlords also qualify for the £7500 grant, and it won't cause us a problem if we then want a heat pump for our own home, we could  get the grant for our house too? Are there any other potential sources of funding that it's worth us checking (EPC of C already)?

*We trust his opinion on this, it's now at least 16 years old and I was expecting to replace it in the near future.

Recommend attempting to achieve a higher EPC score. Octopus Energy have been known to quote to install a heat pump + indirect water cylinder + K22 radiators all for less than the cost of a new installed boiler (under £3K on occasion). But the lowest quotes are offered to EPC A and B homes predominantly. 

I just had a quote from Octopus of just under £4k (EPC C) it’s going to cost somewhat more as I want all new plumbing rather than risk the existing ancient pipes. I am also considering wet UFH which will push the costs up significantly more.