Will I need to make any modifications to my home to have a heat pump?

Making improvements to your home such as increased insulation and improved glazing will help to reduce the amount of heat your home loses. This may mean that a smaller heat pump is suitable as well as increasing the chances of keeping remaining heat emitters (e.g radiators). 

A heat loss calculation will be conducted by your installer and will give an indication of where heat is being lost from your property. The calculation is carried out on a room-by-room basis, and will be completely unique according to specific characteristics of the property, like the ones in the above list. 

Using this calculation ensures that the heat pump installed at your property will be the correct size, maximising efficiency and performance.

Heat pumps work with lower flow temperatures than other systems, such as a boiler. The heat loss calculation carried out by your installer will identify what temperature the system could efficiently operate at and whether or not the emitters around your home (for example, radiators) are suitable for this temperature. While it’s not always the case, you may need to upsize your radiators, so they are able to work with the lower flow temperature. 

If you’re replacing a combi-boiler with a heat pump, you will need to have a compatible air source heat pump cylinder as well. This will mean finding a suitable location within your property, which your installer will look at with you. 

While you may need to make some changes to your property, you might be eligible for specific grants to go towards the cost of these improvements, such as the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. 

We’ve also outlined some of the other considerations to keep in mind in our guide to heat pumps here.