Energy Systems Catapult (ESC) has released ‘Heat pump talk’, a new guide to support heating engineers in helping those considering installing heat pumps in their home make an informed decision.
The guide forms part of the ‘Electrification of Heat’ (EoH) project, funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), which installed 742 heat pumps in a range of households in partnership with delivery contractors, Warmworks, E.ON and OVO Energy.
During the EoH project, the ESC conducted an number of interview case studies. Three participants were specifically asked about communication with installers during the project and three respective installers were interviewed about their discoveries around effective communication during the project. The findings from these interviews, the company has said, informed the production of the ‘Heat pump talk’ guide.
The guide leads the customer through the installation journey from the initial enquiry stage through to post installation, providing clear example answers to frequently asked questions – such as “will my home still be as warm as it is with a boiler” or “is it efficient to have the heat pump continuously running” – throughout.
Other example answers cover queries surrounding cost, available grant funding and installation.
The BEIS Public Attitudes Tracker (Wave 36) showed that only 5% of respondents felt they knew a lot about heat pumps, whilst 77% had limited or no awareness at all.
Despite data from the European Heat Pump Association showing that UK installations tripled to over 42,779 in 2021, last December the Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit stated that the UK is lagging behind European installation rates at 63 per 100,000 people in comparison to Estonia who installed 1,583 heat pumps per 100,000 people or Poland with 259 in the same year.
To support an accelerated uptake of heat pumps in the UK, the guide also helps installers navigate the initial assessment of a customer’s house during the survey and design stage, providing lead questions to determine a property’s suitability for heat pumps and assess the best model to install.
“Heat pumps will undoubtedly play an important role in the decarbonisation of heating British homes, but there is still work to be done to overcome barriers to installation for consumers. We can change this. We can start by helping consumers navigate the transition to a heat pump by ensuring we provide them with clear and easy to understand information and guidance on installing a heat pump”, said innovation director at Catapult, Richard Halsey.
“The latest guide, ‘Heat pump talk’ aims to help installers put the minds of customers at ease and do-away with common misperceptions by demonstrating what a real-world heat pump installation journey looks like. The guide is not exhaustive, after all, every home is different and will require heating solutions tailored to a customer’s home, but it does provide a starting point for conversations for those installers on the front lines of the UK’s decarbonisation journey.
“While heat pump installations in homes are growing in popularity, the UK is still lagging behind Europe in terms of the number of heat pumps installed in homes. This coupled with a huge consumer awareness gap – 77% of people say they know nothing about heat pumps – makes for a challenging market. It is the heating industry’s responsibility to actively and effectively engage with consumers to improve awareness of the benefits of heat pumps and how the installation journey will impact them.”