Detached property, hosted by Alan

The Octopus installation team took 4 days in early Nov 24 to complete the work. The hardware (pump, hot water cylinder, and radiators) and pipework etc. was installed quickly, and the later work was all electrical. The team gave me room heaters as the heating was off during the installation, but you likely wouldn't notice it during summer. The hot water was kept on during installation with a temporary immersion circuit, so we were able to shower and clean the house etc. as normal. In terms of other changes to my house, I have solar panels and an EV charger fitted as well, with a solar i-boost for heating the water on sunny days with excess solar generation, so we're almost gas-free (just the hob to go)!

The heat pump has actually been better for us, because it keeps the house at a more consistent temperature while using less 'active heat'. To explain, our gas boiler used to burn and heat the water in the heating system 'overly hot' to the point that you couldn't touch the radiators. That heated the space up, but as soon as the temperature was reached (in the hall, the coldest part of the house where the thermostat was), it cut out but the rooms were left stewing, so you had to turn the heating down until the rooms got cold again. I called it 'sprint and drift' heating. The heat pump is smarter, keeping the heating at more like a steady pace in a marathon than a sprint. There are multiple temperature monitors (in the heat pump itself, in the hall, outside on the wall) and they talk to each other to triangulate the power used in the system and regulate the flow temperature etc. to the radiators to optimally heat the rooms. The new radiators are much more efficient, producing more heat from a lower temperature to keep things consistent. Power usage, for me, will drastically drop off as we enter spring a) because of the solar panels, but also b) because we won't require heating as things warm up outside. Plus, added bonus, the expelled cold air from the heat pump will be welcome to stand in front of at the height of summer to keep us cool!