Heat Pumps, Are They Worth a Look?
With government grants now offering up to £9,000 towards installation, more homeowners are considering an alternative way to heat their properties.
For most of us, heating the house has traditionally meant a boiler. But increasingly, particularly in rural parts of Kent and Sussex where mains gas isn’t always available, another piece of equipment is appearing outside people’s homes: the heat pump.
The principle is actually fairly straightforward. An air-source heat pump takes heat from the outside air and transfers it into the home, using electricity to run the system. Remarkably, it can still extract useful heat when the weather outside is cold. Ground-source systems work on a similar principle, but draw their heat from the ground instead.
The attraction is that rather than creating heat by burning fuel, a heat pump moves existing heat from one place to another. When properly designed and installed in a suitable property, that can make it a very efficient way of providing heating and hot water.
The initial cost, however, has been one of the biggest obstacles. That is where the government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme comes in. Most eligible homeowners in England and Wales can currently receive £7,500 towards an air-to-water or ground-source heat pump. For certain properties without a mains gas connection that are replacing oil or LPG heating, that support has increased to £9,000, available until 31 March 2027. The grant is normally arranged through an MCS-certified installer and deducted from the cost of the installation.
Heat pumps won’t necessarily suit every house. Insulation, existing radiators, available outdoor space and the way the property is used all need considering, particularly with some of the older homes found across our region.
But for homeowners already contemplating replacing an ageing oil or gas boiler, they are certainly becoming harder to overlook.
And with £9,000 currently available to some rural households, now might be a particularly good time to find out whether the sums add up.
For those considering whether a heat pump could work for their home, local specialists JUNO Renewables are on hand to help make sense of the options. Covering Sussex and Kent, their team can talk homeowners through everything from suitability and installation to the government-backed grants currently available, including how to access the funding you may be entitled to. A conversation with the experts could be a very good place to start.