If your home tends to be cold or has single glazed windows, a heat pump should not be your first consideration. Heat pump systems work best when generating heat at a lower temperature so are best utilised in homes which are already well insulated. In many instances, the installation of a heat pump system is often done in conjunction with retrofit works to improve the home’s energy performance.

If the home is well insulated, replacing a conventional heating system with a heat pump system can have a huge impact on the comfort levels of the home. The heat pump system can eliminate oil and gas bills from the home, while reducing energy usage and reducing carbon emissions.

Prior to installing a heat pump, a full home survey should be carried out to ensure the house is suitable and to identify any additional insulation measures which may be required.

The SEAI Home Energy Grants programme offers grants to help homeowners install a heat pump system into their home and realise these benefits. The SEAI also provides funding towards a Technical Assessment of your home by an independent SEAI registered Technical Advisor, who will help you make an informed decision and ensure your home and the heat pump system are a good match. View the list of SEAI Registered Technical Advisors:

Heat pump systems are at their most efficient and effective when generating heat at a lower temperature. On this basis, one of the requirements for a home to qualify for an SEAI Home Energy grant for a heat pump system is that the dwelling has low heat loss. Some of the measures that can help achieve this are insulation upgrades such roof and wall insulation upgrades, which are grant-aided under SEAI’s Home Energy Grants programme. Good insulation is needed to reduce draughts in the home and eliminate heat losses through open chimneys, which will affect the performance of your heat pump system. 

To help achieve this in your home, you must engage an independent SEAI registered Technical Advisor before applying for the heat pump system grant. They will carry out a technical assessment and Building Energy Rating on the house before guiding you on the energy performance of the dwelling, particularly on the suitability of the dwelling for a heat pump system, based on the dwelling’s heat loss. They will provide you with independent guidance on measures that may be necessary to ensure that the dwelling fabric heat loss is lowered to an acceptable level for a heat pump system to perform at its best. 

A house with poor insulation and single glazing could cost substantially more to upgrade to the necessary level than, say, a well-insulated dwelling with newer double glazing. The Technical Advisor can also help you understand the types of heat pump systems available and the options most suitable for your home before you talk in more depth to a heat pump contractor. It is worth discussing home upgrades with friends and family who may have already carried out the measures to give you a better insight into the advantages, improvements, and possible issues they experienced when upgrading their own homes. You should visit an existing heat pump system before proceeding with the installation.

There are a number of different types of heat pump systems, air source, ground source and water source. The most common heat pump systems extract heat from external air, typically using an outside unit. These heat pump systems do not require underground piping to source heat and so are easier to install as part of a retrofit project. Air to water heat pumps are the most popular choice of system. Heat is distributed through radiators or underfloor heating and they can also produce hot water. As heat pumps operate with lower temperature water the installation may require the replacement of your existing radiators to low temperature radiators. The new system will have a range of different controls i.e. time and temperature regulation and you will be able choose which areas of your home you wish to heat at any time.