đ± A sign from the climate gods
Our boiler has gone kaput.
After initially screaming into the night, I saw it as a sign from the climate gods that this is the moment to undertake the most meaningful single act for a household to reduce its carbon footprint. Itâs time to bin the boiler and install a heat pump.
As itâs July and not January, we have sidestepped peak hunting season for the more predatory plumbers sniffing out desperation. The sharp intakes of breath, scorn aimed at tradespersons past, condescending mockery about the brand of the non-functioning boiler⊠all a pre-amble to deliver an eye-gouging quote.
So, with the sun shining and in no rush, I was in my shorts making enquiries about air source heat pumps. We would, the theory goes, cut our carbon emissions by half. If that wasnât enough, we would take a chunk out of our bills and perform a tiny act of defiance against the Petrostates.
Not only would a heat pump warm our house in the winter, it could also function as an air conditioner in the summer. How exciting.
Only it proved increasingly unappealing at every turn: convoluted, expensive and risky.
đ”âđ« Call to Vaillant
The first contact was made to the countryâs biggest name in boilers and increasingly heat pumps - Vaillant. (It has a government contract to install 600,000 pumps by 2025 and recently opened a new £4m plant in Derbyshire to crank up production).
To say the Vaillant sales person wasnât sleazy is an understatement. Well-informed and striving to be helpful, I was given a heavily caveated guide on the benefits of heat pumps over the course of a 20 minute call. So heavy were the caveats, however, that I became suspicious that this man was, in fact, an agent for Vaillantâs boiler sales team.
Was I completely aware of a heat pumpâs limitations? After I explained the areas of concern, he then gave me a load of jobs to do. I was directed to multiple websites, told to check the profiles of installers, go to the government website and instructed to fill out online assessments on our current insulation and energy usage.
Vaillantâs most popular pump, the Arotherm+, would set me back somewhere between ÂŁ10,000 and ÂŁ22,000 (excluding labour).
I was keen to find out if I could snag ÂŁ5,000 from the government via the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
đĄ Filling in details on Gov.uk
The UK government wants 600,000 heat pumps going onto the sides of homes every year by 2028. It is reported that 8,790 heat pumps were installed in the UK during the first three months of this year.
It is still way short of whatâs needed.
The .gov website was simple enough to navigate. After entering my details, I received the good news that it is feasible to install one at our address. Hooray! But I was also told to carry out planning approval.
đ€ Fear and loathing from installers
I used the government-directed website to find an installer - invariably plumbers who have the requisite heat pump training.
The response from the first call set the tone: âI install them but I donât like them. They never get that warm.â Right oh.
Second call: âThey work well [long pause]⊠I think.â On enquiry, this installer has only fitted one heat pump.
Third call: âIâve done a few but I wouldnât advise it unless you live a new build. Theyâre noisy and youâll have to get a whole load of new radiators and upgrade all the pipes.â
On further examination some of these concerns have elements of truth. Itâs nevertheless also true that people are often resistant to change so I took the caution from plumbers with a raised eyebrow. The car industry had for years been hostile to electric vehicles.
To overcome plumber inertia, the government has started tempting them with ÂŁ500 on their heat pump training. To reach its target, the government needs 27,000 trained installers by 2028. There are currently just 3,000.Â
Prices quoted to me ranged from ÂŁ8,000 to ÂŁ25,000. It was notable that all of the installers were sketchy on whether Iâd qualify for the governmentâs ÂŁ5,000 grant. All of the quotes were open-ended, suggesting it was likely weâd also have to fork out on new radiators, pipes and potential building work.
(Aside: replacing a gas boiler costs between ÂŁ2,000 and ÂŁ4,000, including labour.)
My other worry was the only place the pump could be fitted would be on the wall separating the kitchen and our small garden. I am unsure where we would accommodate the water tank we would need alongside the pump.
đ€ What does Pimlico say?
Pimlico Plumbers is one of the countryâs best known boiler fitters. It has started training a number of its 400+ workforce on heat pump installations.
Hereâs an extract of the estimate we received from Pimlico on fitting a heat pump:
Heat pump ÂŁ8000 + VAT upwards
Tank ÂŁ2000 + VAT
All radiators will need replacing
The heat pumps have a maximum of 55c so the cylinders need replacing with bigger coils which I believe there are three.
The electrical supply to the property will need to be tested and possibly upgraded.
The property will need to be tested in terms of insulation as the heat maybe lost so that is a factor to be considered.
Then the labour for all the above.
[The installer] is happy to come and measure up for the estimate. There are multiple calculations needed for each room to be able to produce an estimate so is completed on the hourly rate ÂŁ120 + VAT, this will take the majority of the day to measure and then will take time to produce the estimated costs and system that will work.
đ€ Early adopters and Greenbotching
Comparisons with electric cars comes to mind. A new technology which is better for the planet is here today. But weâre punishing the early adopters who should be evangelists. Despite the innovations, charging cars has become so maligned an experience that a large number of the first wave of electric car owners are complaining to the rest of us rather than speaking of how amazing their lives are without petrol. As a result, the second wave are having second thoughts on switching. Pilita Clark, writing in the FT recently, called this GreenBotching.
The term âearly adoptersâ is most obviously associated with the strange people who queued overnight outside Apple shops and whooped in delight for the privilege of being the guinea pigs to withstand buggy early iPhones and iPods.
The early adopters do more than stand in a long queue. They overpay and take on risk on an unproven product.
Unlike a new phone, an electric car going wrong is more expensive, can impact an entire family and is way more complex and humiliating a reversal. A charging problem on a phone is considerably less inconvenient than with a car. Taking a punt on a new system to heat a home carries even great jeopardy.
Heat pumps need an Apple or Tesla
The government has been addressing manufacturing and installation - perhaps in a clumsy and poorly thought through manner. As well as tempting plumbers with a discount on their training, it has threatened to fine boiler companies if they donât make enough heat pumps to meet its target. The companies have (quite reasonably) pushed back, arguing not enough people want one.
The bigger problem is heat pumps are simply not compelling enough for people like me who, in theory, are open to the idea.
My enthusiasm for a heat pump was killed through the absence of three elements: price, trust, simplicity.
It really neednât be this way.
PRICE. Around 60% of Swedish households have a heat pump. One of the biggest reasons for this is how people pay for it: monthly.
TRUST. I am unconvinced our heating will work. I donât know if the installers know what theyâre doing. I am unsure if it will be warm enough when itâs really cold outside. Iâm even being asked to stake changing all our radiators and pipes to make this change.
Perhaps I donât have the early adopter mindset. This recent Guardian story claims 80% of households who have switched to a heat pump are satisfied.
SIMPLICITY. My experience was complicated before I even committed. What I really wanted was the prospect of a meaningful leap in how our home was warmed done with ease and reassurance that the whole process was taken care of; something ludicrously simple which worked like a dream. Minimal effort on my part with tangible benefits without caveats from the get-go. Basically, something Apple-esque. (If only Apple saw potential in heat pumps rather than ski masks decked with 12 cameras.)
This may sound unrealistic, but itâs frankly the level required to persuade millions rather than single thousands to swap their boilers for heat pumps.
A couple of new companies are having a go, notably Furbnow in the UK and AtmosZero in the US. Octopus Energy is working with the Japanese firm Daikan to be, in its own words, a âone stop shopâ. It has gone furthest in presenting the offer in simple terms and has a financing option to break up the cost.
I hadnât heard back from Octopus at the time of publishing this post.
Heat pumps are definitely coming, but despite my willingness, it appears I donât have the money, space or risk appetite to pull the trigger today. For the time being at least, Iâm back to the plumbers and however much they gouge my eyes out with their quotes it appears to be a lot less expensive and daunting than taking the plunge on a heat pump. Sad.
It's been a while old friend. I'm down in London on the 4th if you're around for a coffee. Flying visit and I know it's short notice. Hope you're well (after 20 years??) and hopefully catch up soon. Temp email is justforpanja.71x6h@simplelogin.com
https://twitter.com/_felix_miller/status/1682540102810238976?t=Ij_XWdslo3tGZ_H-zQcpzg&s=19
Just tweeted about this. Ask a renewable specialist, they are not selling gas boilers too and have more experience. Good luck!