People Saying Heat Pumps are Rubbish - Are They?

TractorFactor

Reed_Richards said:

... but I had to replace nearly all my radiators with ones having a larger surface area as part of the installation.

Hi

How much was your installation if you dont mind me asking? - I see, someone else asked.
We'll have to have our radiators replaced as most, if not all look like these - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Myson-Convector-Radiator-Central-Heating/dp/B003SI86AM

What do you do about hot water in summer when traditionally, most people turn their heating off?  Or does the heat pump just heat the hot water only?

TractorFactor

Thanks most people for their comments on this.

I'm lucky as we're moving house.

I will have around £6000 of equity that I can budget towards a new boiler - possibly a bit more as we'll have to replace the old boiler in the house anyway.  Put that with the £7500 scheme would probably make it equal amounts of money to install either a new gas or new heat pump system.

We'll need new radiators though as the current ones look like this:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Myson-Convector-Radiator-Central-Heating/dp/B003SI86AM

The equity is money I didn't have before and is purely budgeted to a new heating system, therefore payback time isn't really an issue.  I will also be using other equity money to get solar panels installed, which leans me towards heat pumps as the cost of running it will be greatly reduced.  Again, as it's money I didn't have before the move then payback time isn't really a concern.

Still haven't made my mind up but need to go back and read through the rest of the thread.

TractorFactor

Spies said:

7 of my 8 radiators were replaced, the total cost of my install was about £1200 (including £100 referral) 

Was this for the heat pump as well I guess (sorry if this is a silly question).

TractorFactor

Reed_Richards said:

I had a completely new ASHP system fitted in my 1980s bungalow in two days by two blokes on the plumbing. There was a separate gang of sparkies to wire it up and install the solar PV for just over half of the second day.

Oo, this is exactly what we're looking at.
Roughly how much was this to install?
I don't know whether to get the solar panels and heat pump done at the same time and get it over with or one after another.

FreeBear

Even if you do decide to stick with a gas boiler, it is well worth fitting larger radiators. You get to run at lower flow temperatures which means better efficiency out of the boiler. And when you are ready to transition to a heat pump, you may not have to replace radiators again.

I fitted larger radiators all round when I had a new boiler back in 2023 and have been experimenting with low flow temperatures. Much of the time, around 45°C has been enough to keep the place warm. Today though, I've turned it up to 50°C as it has been close to freezing outside. Did try 30-35°C over Christmas, but found the boiler was short cycling (not good for efficiency or reliability).

If you go down the same path, pick a boiler that can modulate right down - My heat demand can peak at 12-12kW if I crank up the flow temperature. But most of the time, it is chugging away at 4-6kW.

Exiled_Tyke

TractorFactor said:

What do you do about hot water in summer when traditionally, most people turn their heating off?  Or does the heat pump just heat the hot water only?

Yes the heat pump can be set to just heat water - and very efficiently and cheaply too in the Summer months.  

Spies

TractorFactor said:

Spies said:

7 of my 8 radiators were replaced, the total cost of my install was about £1200 (including £100 referral) 

Was this for the heat pump as well I guess (sorry if this is a silly question).

Yes it was the total price

TractorFactor

NedS said:

Two guys installed our system in 3 days, plus the electrician was here for one day. Install included taking out old oil boiler, installing ASHP and DHW cylinder, replacing all the central heating pipe work with 22/15mm copper runs, and fitting 12 new radiators. Some of the new pipework required lifting floors and drilling through walls, which slowed them down somewhat. They would have easily been done in 2 days if they could have used more of the existing pipework rather than replacing it. Our installers were great and really knew their stuff.

Roughly how much was this to do if you don't mind me asking?

Our house is a 1920s house with slim radiators.  The boiler is in a bedroom with the water tank.  We'd want that tank in the loft (although I need to board that, apart from the area where the tank will go) and I want any boiler thing in the utility room, but I don't know what is internal and what is external to the home.  Hoping a space outside can house the outdoor things.

Trying to think about how much a new gas boiler would be compared with heat pump.

TractorFactor

FreeBear said:

Even if you do decide to stick with a gas boiler, it is well worth fitting larger radiators. You get to run at lower flow temperatures which means better efficiency out of the boiler. And when you are ready to transition to a heat pump, you may not have to replace radiators again.

Thanks, although as the old boiler will need replacing within the first 6 months of me moving house so will choose either one and that'll be that.  It's a long term house so don't mind, while I have "free" money, investing in something that we'll see long term benefits.

FreeBear

TractorFactor said: Our house is a 1920s house with slim radiators.  The boiler is in a bedroom with the water tank.  We'd want that tank in the loft (although I need to board that, apart from the area where the tank will go) and I want any boiler thing in the utility room, but I don't know what is internal and what is external to the home.  Hoping a space outside can house the outdoor things.

Trying to think about how much a new gas boiler would be compared with heat pump.

Also in a (late) 1920s house here. The old heating system was a Baxi back boiler with a DHW cylinder in a bedroom. Originally, the radiators were type 10 (single panel, no fins) fixed under windows, although some had been replaced with type 11 and a plinth heater put in the kitchen. All round, pretty darned poor. Replumbed, moving radiators to internal walls, and a mix of T21 & T22 with just one T11 in the hallway. New plinth heater added today (rated at 2.4kW) in the kitchen, and all powered by a Viessmann 050 combi directly below the bathroom. Near instant hot water upstairs, but still have to wait when using the kitchen tap. Did all the plumbing myself, and including the new boiler, total cost was around £3K. If I had waited until April last year, EPC & thermal upgrades were dropped from the Boiler Upgrade Scheme requirements - That would have tipped my decision towards an ASHP (had a quote from Octopus for £2700 back in January).

Neighbour a few doors down had a local company in to replace their entire heating system a few months prior. Took about a week, and I don't think they had any change out of £8K.

Contemplating where the gubbins would go when (if ?) I install a heat pump - I have a small extension on the side that has a utility room. 1.5m by ~800mm available to house a DHW tank and associated volumiser & expansion tanks (should also have enough space for the washing machine). Would get instant hot water in the kitchen, but a long wait in the bathroom. Utilising the original space in the bedroom for a DHW tank would mean long waits at all taps for hot water along with excessive pipe runs from any heat pump. So using the utility room is about the best compromise. An outside monoblock ASHP would be roughly 360x1000x1000 and sit 300-400mm away from a wall. Not a huge amount of real estate.