Going green?

If your energy bills are reaching boiling point, you might be tempted to turn to something less expensive – and if you believe the headlines, opting for a greener energy source like heat pumps.

However, with the cost of living crisis being what it is currently, now is actually not the time to be replacing boilers with heat pumps. There’s the initial outlay cost, for starters. Yes, a new boiler might set you back around £2,000 on average, but heat pumps can cost much more.

Expensive exchange

The Energy Saving Trust estimates a typical air source heat pump will cost around £6,000 to £8,000. A ground source heat pump is even more expensive, costing from £10,000 to £18,000. 

Yes, you read that right – £18,000. That is a staggering 10 times the average cost to install the boiler.

What about the return on investment?

A good heat pump salesperson will tell you that while the outlay is much higher, you will eventually recoup those costs because renewables are much cheaper to run. But is it?

Without complicating things too much, the return on investment (ROI) of your heat pump is based on what’s called the Renewable Heat Incentive. This was a payment given by the government as an incentive for homeowners and businesses that chose greener heat options at their premises. 

Under the Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive scheme, your ROI would be at around 10%, with full payback within around 12 years*.

Firstly, does anyone know the typical lifespan of an air source heat pump? Incidentally, it’s about 15 years – so you’d just about get your money back, and then you’d need to think about replacing it with another. 

Lucrative DRHI now closed

Plus, that is assuming that the 15-year window is an accurate estimate, given the technology is still quite new – so there is a chance it could need replacing before that time.

Oh and the Domestic RHI scheme is now closed. So, if you didn’t apply before March 2022, you now can’t get on the scheme, unless you are taking over a property that already has renewables installed and you are applying for a change of details. 

So it remains to be seen whether or not you can still get any kind of government incentive – and we’re going to need something good if they want us to help them reach ambitious targets of 600,000 heat pumps that they want to be installed in our homes by 2028!

Even if you’re tempted by the savings compared to traditional gas, don’t forget most renewables are powered by electricity – and thanks to recent government levies, electricity now costs four times as much as gas.

Ironically, the Government imposed a “green levy” that adds £159 a year to our electricity bills.

It means unwitting homeowners who go green in good faith will find themselves stung by higher electricity costs to heat and power their homes – making the switch to more eco-friendly options completely irrelevant as they will be paying the same, if not more.

Still room for the traditional boiler

Boilers, in comparison, are much cheaper to install and a good one that is serviced regularly and well-maintained will last you about 10-12 years, or even longer.

Plus, boilers are just more viable. How does a pensioner afford an initial outlay of up to £18,000 for a heat pump? With the cost of living being what it is currently, how does the Average Joe afford one?

Also, how does someone living on the 15th floor of an apartment block get a heat pump? Will there be one pump for the whole block? How will any cost savings be divvied out?

Would you buy a home with a heat pump?

And then there’s the added problem of property saleability. It seems some people are put off by heat pumps, with Jonathan Rolande, director and property surveyor at House Buy Fast, saying installing a heat pump could make it harder to sell your home. “Property buyers do not like these new, relatively untested systems and in my experience, will not pay more for a property with them installed” he told The Express. “In some cases, buyers will be put off altogether.”

We get it, boilers get a bad rep. In the past, they’ve been slammed as expensive, clunky and noisy bits of equipment – and in old houses with separate, uninsulated tanks for heating water, this might be the case as it could be bad news for your bills. 

However, these days, modern boilers are much better. Combination, or “combi” boilers in particular are very slick and efficient because instead of storing vast amounts of hot water that is being heated unnecessarily, a combi boiler will heat it on command. Even if you don’t opt for a combi, the energy efficiency grade of the boiler has improved dramatically and now, your boiler could cost you as little as 1p every 5 minutes.

Can we help with an upgrade?

According to the rumour mill, the Government could step in and force the banning of traditional boilers – and some say this might happen as early as 2025. Now’s the time to get your skates on if you’ve been thinking of upgrading.

Here at Koziwarm we can also help with the initial outlay of the cost of a new boiler with our flexible 0% finance options.

GIve us a call today to see if we can help your home stay Koziwarm or alternatively try our online quote system.

*source: https://purerenewables.co.uk/energy-solutions/air-source-heat-pump/#:~:text=Air%20Source%20Heat%20Pumps%20(ASHPs,period%20of%20around%2012%20years.