FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Here we have collected the answers to the most common questions, so you can quickly and easily find what you need.
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Here we have collected the answers to the most common questions, so you can quickly and easily find what you need.
Air Source Heat Pumps FAQs
Answering your air source heat pump questions, before you ask them
Heat pumps require installation by a trained installer in order to ensure a high level of quality. Please contact our team or find another MCS certified installer.
A heat pump captures heat from the ambient air, or solar energy stored in the ground or water. A compression cycle raises the low input temperature to a higher one, providing hot water for heating your home.
Electricity powers this process, and the amount used depends on the input and required output flow temperatures. The closer these two temperatures are, the less energy the system requires to complete the operation. Since the system relies on electricity, it produces no carbon emissions at the point of use.
Heat naturally flows from warmer to colder places, but to provide heat to a home during colder outdoor temperatures, the system reverses this flow, moving heat from a colder area to a warmer one.
All heat pumps use a refrigerant gas within the system. When the gas pressure increases, its temperature also rises, and this relationship between pressure and temperature is essential to a heat pump’s function.
The heat pump draws heat energy from the air, ground, or water and passes it through a heat exchanger, where the refrigerant gas absorbs it, raising its temperature. The refrigerant then enters a compressor, which applies pressure to further increase the temperature. From there, it flows through another heat exchanger, where the energy transfers to the primary water flow within the property, delivering hot water to the home.
In many cases, local authorities permit the installation of a heat pump as development, provided that certain limitations and conditions are met. If you live in a listed building or a conservation area, then further requirements might apply. The requirements vary in each devolved nation, so it’s best to check with your local planning department before proceeding.
For example, in England, air-source heat pumps, the volume of the air source heat pump’s outdoor compressor unit (including housing) must not exceed 0.6 cubic metres. More information for England can be found on the planning portal website.
Local authorities usually consider installing a ground source or water source heat pump on domestic premises as permitted development, so it does not require a planning permission application.
However, it’s best to contact your local council to check on the Planning Portal Website.
You should also inform your local district network operator (DNO) prior to installing a heat pump. The DNO is the company responsible for bringing electricity from the network to your home. Your MCS installer can assist you with this and you can find more information in this guidance from the Energy Network Association.
You can find more guidance on registering a heat pump in England, Scotland and Wales on the UK Government website.
Heat pumps are more efficient than other heating systems, and use a small amount of electricity to produce a greater amount of heat for the home. Efficiency of heating systems is measured by the Coefficient of Performance (CoP). For example, if a heat pump has a CoP of 3.0, then it will deliver 3 kWh of heat power for every kWh unit of electricity used.
Every heat pump has a published datasheet with its measured CoP. The CoP is measured at a single point in time, with ASHP it is normally when the air is +70C and water leaving the heat pump unit is 350C (A7/W35). However, in real-world-usage, the air or ground temperatures vary throughout the year, which may affect the heat pump efficiency.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is a government grant programme for homes in England and Wales. Vouchers of £7,500 are available towards the installation costs of air and ground/water source heat pumps respectively. More information about eligible properties and how are apply can be on the .gov website.
Government funded support worth around £5,000 is available for energy saving home improvements like heating and insulation. Find more information on the Home Energy Scotland Website.
Generally, yes. A recent study found that all housing types are suitable for heat pumps. However, in order to ensure the system runs as efficiently as possible, insulation and radiator upgrades may be required.
Heat pumps operate at their most efficient when they distribute a low flow temperature around the heating system. Many domestic properties will already have radiators that are compatible with a heat pump system. In some cases, it may be beneficial to upgrade to larger radiators, in order to run the heat pump as efficiently as possible.
Radiators come in many different shapes and sizes. You can often swap single-panel radiators for double or triple-panel radiators to increase surface area without taking up additional wall space. This can more than triple the heat emitted without taking up more wall space. Radiator upgrades can be a cost-effective way of improving the efficiency of your heat pump and saving on energy bills.
Some wet central heating systems installed in the 1970s have a particular type of piping (called microbore), which has a small internal diameter. This can be problematic when upgrading to a heat pump. The very small pipe diameter means the heat pump cannot transfer water quickly enough to the radiators. If you think you have microbore pipe, speak to your installer when they come to survey your house.
Underfloor heating, which operates with low flow temperatures, pairs excellently with heat pumps. However, retrofitting underfloor heating in existing homes can be practically challenging.
Ultimately, the perceivable noise will depend on the heat pump running conditions, the acoustic environment, and the quality of the external unit.
Ground and water source heat pumps are typically located inside your home in an insulated casing which limits any noise intrusion.
The air source heat pumps outdoor unit typically has Sound Power levels between 55 – 75 dB(A) depending on the manufacture and output. However, some external units operate as low as 40 decibels. For comparison, this is about the same volume as a quiet library! The outside unit of an air source heat pump produces a low-level background “hum.” MCS installers must conduct a noise assessment before installing an air source heat pump.
The cost of heat pumps depends on the heat load of your property, the size of the heat pump needed to heat the home, the chosen heat pump technology, and any additional installation requirements, such as radiator upgrades, that may be necessary.Find out more on our blog page!
A well-designed efficient heat pump system may offer lower or comparable running costs to a natural gas boiler system.
As the price of natural gas is expected to rise again in the future, heat pumps can offer some protection against future price fluctuations.
For those currently using oil or LPG fuels to heat their homes, a well-designed heat pump system should save money over the course of a year, provided the system is installed correctly.
How the operating conditions will affect your energy bill will depend on several factors, including:
- What fuel you are replacing and how much it costs,
- Your electricity tariff,
- Which type of heat pump you install and how efficient it is,
- The design of your central heating system,
- Your location and its average air or ground temperatures throughout the year.
Yes! A standard heat pump requires a cylinder to store hot water. The cylinder allows the heat pump to gradually heat the water, and store it for the moment it is needed.
Most heat pumps can provide and store water at 55°C, periodically heating up to 60°C or higher for disinfection purposes. Alternatively, some systems use an immersion heater to top up the water to the required temperature.
A low-temperature heat pump typically cannot use boiler cylinders because the coil within the cylinder is not large enough. Therefore, installers usually recommend a heat pump cylinder with an appropriately sized coil to ensure the most efficient achievement of the required hot water temperature.
A number of factors will affect this, but for a new-build home, an installer can complete the air source heat pump installation in a couple of days.
For a refurbishment, the timeline depends on whether your radiators need replacing, whether you need to re-site your water cylinder, where the outside unit will be fitted, and other factors.
It will also depend on whether you are completely replacing the existing heating system or simply adding a heat pump to work alongside the current heating in a hybrid solution – which more people are doing now.
Manufacturers have been producing heat pumps in the UK for over a decade, with heavy investment in R&D to ensure they are specifically designed for UK conditions.
The system will continue working to maximum efficiency down to -10C and will carry on working to -20C or more, so you can rely on a warm and cosy home even when there is snow on the ground.
Heat pumps require installation by a trained installer in order to ensure a high level of quality. Please contact our team or find another MCS certified installer.
A heat pump captures heat from the ambient air, or solar energy stored in the ground or water. A compression cycle raises the low input temperature to a higher one, providing hot water for heating your home.
Electricity powers this process, and the amount used depends on the input and required output flow temperatures. The closer these two temperatures are, the less energy the system requires to complete the operation. Since the system relies on electricity, it produces no carbon emissions at the point of use.
Heat naturally flows from a warmer place to a colder place. To provide heat to a home when outdoor temperatures are colder, we need heat to flow in the other direction – from a colder to a warmer place.
All Heat Pumps have a “refrigerant” within the system, in the form of a gas. When the pressure of gas increases, the temperature follows. This relationship between pressure and temperature is key to how heat pumps work.
The heat pump draws heat energy from the air, ground, or water and passes it through a heat exchanger, where the refrigerant gas absorbs it, raising its temperature. The refrigerant then enters a compressor, which applies pressure to further increase the temperature. From here, it passes through a heat exchanger, where the system transfers energy to the primary water flow within the property, delivering hot water to the home.
In many cases, the installation of a heat pump is considered as permitted development provided certain limitations and conditions are met. If you live in a listed building or a conservation area, then further requirements might apply. The requirements vary in each devolved nation, so it’s best to check with your local planning department before proceeding.
For example, in England, air-source heat pumps, the volume of the air source heat pump’s outdoor compressor unit (including housing) must not exceed 0.6 cubic metres. More information for England can be found at Planning Portal’s website.
The installation of a ground source heat pump or a water source heat pump on domestic premises is usually considered to be permitted development, and not needing an application for planning permission. However, it’s best to contact your local council and check via Planning Portal’s website.
You should also inform your local district network operator (DNO) prior to installing a heat pump. The DNO is the company responsible for bringing electricity from the network to your home. Your MCS installer can assist you with this and you can find more information in this guidance from the Energy Network Association.
You can find more guidance on registering a heat pump in England, Scotland and Wales on the UK Government website.
Heat pumps are more efficient than other heating systems, and use a small amount of electricity to produce a greater amount of heat for the home. Efficiency of heating systems is measured by the Coefficient of Performance (CoP). For example, if a heat pump has a CoP of 3.0, then it will deliver 3 kWh of heat power for every kWh unit of electricity used.
Every heat pump has a published datasheet with its measured CoP. The CoP is measured at a single point in time, with ASHP it is normally when the air is +70C and water leaving the heat pump unit is 350C (A7/W35). However, in real-world-usage, the air or ground temperatures vary throughout the year, which may affect the heat pump efficiency.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is a government grant programme for homes in England and Wales. Vouchers of £7,500 are available towards the installation costs of air and ground/water source heat pumps respectively. More information about eligible properties and how are apply can be found on the .gov website.
Government funded support worth around £5,000 is available for energy saving home improvements like heating and insulation. Find more information on the Home Energy Scotland website.
Generally, yes. A recent study found that all housing types are suitable for heat pumps. However, in order to ensure the system runs as efficiently as possible, insulation and radiator upgrades may be required.
Heat pumps operate at their most efficient when they distribute a low flow temperature around the heating system. Many domestic properties will already have radiators that are compatible with a heat pump system. In some cases, it may be beneficial to upgrade to larger radiators, in order to run the heat pump as efficiently as possible.
Radiators come in many different shapes and sizes. You can often swap single-panel radiators for double or triple-panel radiators to increase surface area without taking up additional wall space. This can more than triple the heat emitted without taking up more wall space. Radiator upgrades can be a cost-effective way of improving the efficiency of your heat pump and saving on energy bills.
Some wet central heating systems installed in the 1970s have a particular type of piping (called microbore), which has a small internal diameter. This can be problematic when upgrading to a heat pump. The very small pipe diameter means the heat pump cannot transfer water quickly enough to the radiators. If you think you have microbore pipe, speak to your installer when they come to survey your house.
Heat pumps are considered an excellent partner with underfloor heating which works with low flow temperatures. However, retrofitting underfloor heating in existing homes can be practically challenging.
Ultimately, the perceivable noise will depend on the heat pump running conditions, the acoustic environment, and the quality of the external unit.
Ground and water source heat pumps are typically located inside your home in an insulated casing which limits any noise intrusion.
The air source heat pumps outdoor unit typically has Sound Power levels between 55 – 75 dB(A) depending on the manufacture and output. However, some external units operate as low as 40 decibels. For comparison, this is about the same volume as a quiet library! The outside unit of an air source heat pump produces a low-level background “hum.” MCS installers must conduct a noise assessment before installing an air source heat pump.
The cost of heat pumps depends on the heat load of your property, the size of the heat pump needed to heat the home, the chosen heat pump technology, and any additional installation requirements, such as radiator upgrades, that may be necessary. Find out more on our blog page!
A well-designed efficient heat pump system may offer lower or comparable running costs to a natural gas boiler system.
As the price of natural gas is expected to rise again in the future, heat pumps can offer some protection against future price fluctuations.
For those currently using oil or LPG fuels to heat their homes, a well-designed heat pump system should save money over the course of a year, provided the system is installed correctly.
How the operating conditions will affect your energy bill will depend on several factors, including:
- What fuel you are replacing and how much it costs,
- Your electricity tariff,
- Which type of heat pump you install and how efficient it is,
- The design of your central heating system,
- Your location and its average air or ground temperatures throughout the year.
Yes! A standard heat pump requires a cylinder to store hot water. The cylinder allows the heat pump to gradually heat the water, and store it for the moment it is needed.
Most heat pumps can provide and store water at 55°C, periodically heating up to 60°C or higher for disinfection purposes. Alternatively, some systems use an immersion heater to top up the water to the required temperature.
A low-temperature heat pump typically cannot use boiler cylinders because the coil within the cylinder is not large enough. Therefore, installers usually recommend a heat pump cylinder with an appropriately sized coil to ensure the most efficient achievement of the required hot water temperature.
A number of factors will affect this, but for a new-build home, an installer can complete the air source heat pump installation in a couple of days.
For a refurbishment, the timeline depends on whether your radiators need replacing, whether you need to re-site your water cylinder, where the outside unit will be fitted, and other factors.
It will also depend on whether you are completely replacing the existing heating system or simply adding a heat pump to work alongside the current heating in a hybrid solution – which more people are doing now.
Manufacturers have been producing heat pumps in the UK for over a decade, with heavy investment in R&D to ensure they are specifically designed for UK conditions.
The system will continue working to maximum efficiency down to -10C and will carry on working to -20C or more, so you can rely on a warm and cosy home even when there is snow on the ground.
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