Quote for ASHP

Chestnut-mare

Just had a survey done for an ASHP 13kw for a property with approximately 120 square meters. 9 new radiators, full installation. I’ve not been able to find many other quotes that other people have had but I’m pretty sure this one is very steep! £20k before any grants. With all the grants we’d need to pay £11k. Doing some rough maths we reckon we’re being charged appropriately £10k for the installation work (just the installation, not including parts)

any thoughts?

FreeBear

Chestnut-mare said:

Just had a survey done for an ASHP 13kw for a property with approximately 120 square meters. 9 new radiators, full installation. I’ve not been able to find many other quotes that other people have had but I’m pretty sure this one is very steep! £20k before any grants. With all the grants we’d need to pay £11k. Doing some rough maths we reckon we’re being charged appropriately £10k for the installation work (just the installation, not including parts)

any thoughts?

It is a very steep quote. Are they quoting for a full replump of the system ?

Just punched in a few numbers, and got a couple of rough quotes back. EDF are saying £5800, and Octopus, £5000 for a turbo, or £7000 for an eco install - Octopus had been saying £2800 this time last year, so quite a hike.

The quotes are based on ~100m² property with 8 radiators. Decent levels of loft/wall insulation and modern DG windows. Likely to be an 8kW ASHP, although it is possible I could get away with 6kW. For the most part, pipework is heat pump ready, and I might get away without changing most of the radiators (that would bring the quote down).

NedS

Maybe not that unreasonable. I had a complete retrofit install carried out under ECO4, so I do not know the cost, but I made a rough attempt to price it here:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81395840#Comment_81395840

For a full retrofit, you could easily be looking at £10k in hardware/parts and maybe £5k for labour. The the company needs to cover it's operational costs and make a profit if you want them to still be trading next year, so £20k may not be that unreasonable depending what the installation includes.

It really depends on what is included in the quote.

If you are looking for reputable installers in your area who may be able to provide a quote, the renewableheatinghub are setting up a directory of recommended installers:

https://renewableheatinghub.co.uk/looking-for-the-best-heat-pump-installer-in-the-uk-heres-how-to-find-them/

Reed_Richards

I had what was essentially a full re-plumb in late 2020 and it cost me about £16k (12 kW heat pump).  The work took two weeks to complete, with three men initially so about 4 man-weeks of work.  

NedS

Reed_Richards said:

I had what was essentially a full re-plumb in late 2020 and it cost me about £16k (12 kW heat pump).  The work took two weeks to complete, with three men initially so about 4 man-weeks of work.  

So £20k does not seem unreasonable now - inflation has been pretty steep since 2020 so I would expect prices to have risen substantially. Indeed, the BoE inflation calculator shows that £16k in 2020 is now £20k in 2025

shinytop

Chestnut-mare said:

Just had a survey done for an ASHP 13kw for a property with approximately 120 square meters. 9 new radiators, full installation. I’ve not been able to find many other quotes that other people have had but I’m pretty sure this one is very steep! £20k before any grants. With all the grants we’d need to pay £11k. Doing some rough maths we reckon we’re being charged appropriately £10k for the installation work (just the installation, not including parts)

any thoughts?

A bit expensive IMO.  Ours was £16k in 2021 but that was for a full install as in we had no central heating at all.  That was a 14kW ASHP, 14 rads and a 250l cylinder.  It took 4 men 3 days.

13kW sounds a lot for a 120m2 house. Is it old/poorly insulated?   

Chestnut-mare

It’s currently heated by a coal fire with back boiler. No insulation other than in the attic. Property is about 200 years old. 

FreeBear

Chestnut-mare said:

It’s currently heated by a coal fire with back boiler. No insulation other than in the attic. Property is about 200 years old. 

By the sounds of it, a full replumb of the heating system would be required. That will bump the cost up unless you can do most of the work yourself.

Replumbed my old system back in 2023 with an eye to the day when a heat pump is the only option. Replaced an ancient Baxi back boiler, so got rid of all the old imperial sized pipes and fitted oversized radiators all round. Neighbour a few doors down paid £8K for a similar amount of work whilst I got my total spend down to around £3K.

The_Green_Hornet

It is interesting how heat pump installation prices have changed in the past couple of years.

My first quote from Octopus back in June 2023 was for £10,700.00 for their standard install. Two bedroom mid-terraced house with 5 radiators. I had the survey then declined as it was too expensive even with the £5k government grant.

A received a second quote from Octopus in September 2023 which was £8,100.00.  (Apparently they changed which standard package I was eligible for). With the new government grant of £7.5k the price was very tempting but I wasn't totally convinced about their installation plan so I didn't proceed.

I have just done a new quote on their website, and an equivalent Eco install is now £13,859.60. (£6.359.60 after the government grant).

With a heat pump installation I would also have the additional costs of upwards to £1k for planning permission, asbestos testing, having a new airing cupboard built for the larger hot water cylinder, and redecorating.

For comparison, a quote to replace my gas boiler like-for-like is £2,300.00.

I remember a time when it was claimed that the cost of a heat pump with the government grant was the same as installing a replacement gas boiler. Sadly this is no more.

Either installation prices have to come down, or the government grant has to increase, or both, to make a heat pump viable for anyone other than the wealthiest home owners.

Reed_Richards

The_Green_Hornet said:

I remember a time when it was claimed that the cost of a heat pump with the government grant was the same as installing a replacement gas boiler. Sadly this is no more.

Possibly that was under the old RHI grant scheme which gave you a larger grant in total but spread over 7 years.  I have been receiving the RHI grant every quarter beginning April 2021, 17 quarters now, and the total still hasn't got up to the current £7.5k up front - but it will end up being significantly more than that after the remaining 11 quarters have elapsed.

The_Green_Hornet

Reed_Richards said:

The_Green_Hornet said:

I remember a time when it was claimed that the cost of a heat pump with the government grant was the same as installing a replacement gas boiler. Sadly this is no more.

Possibly that was under the old RHI grant scheme which gave you a larger grant in total but spread over 7 years.  I have been receiving the RHI grant every quarter beginning April 2021, 17 quarters now, and the total still hasn't got up to the current £7.5k up front - but it will end up being significantly more than that after the remaining 11 quarters have elapsed.

Nope. It was just a couple of years ago.

https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/news/heat-pump-price-war-as-heat-pump-goes-on-sale-for-same-price-as-gas-boiler