Earth Notes: Domestic Heat Pumps: Barriers to Installation (2022)

David Symons very kindly shared his story from early 2022:

Moving from gas to heatpumps? My experience of trying to install a heatpump shows it's still far from easy. Here's three actions which would make a big difference.

1. Train the architects. Our sole trader architect hadn't installed a heatpump before. It took a lot of persuasion to get this on the table, batting aside talk of huge installation costs, poor performance etc.
2. Make the process as simple as fitting a gas boiler. Heat pumps are more complex to install, but the whole process today seems grounded in complexity, with multiple people involved across a long supply chain. Even getting the pump sizing was a three week process for our simple home extension. For most installations it needs to be faster, simpler and as easy as installing a boiler.
3. Get the supply chain sorted. When we were ready to order, there were no heat pumps available anywhere in the UK. Of course supply chains are covid disrupted, but there's no zero carbon revolution if there's no pumps available.

The UK's Heat and Buildings Strategy is absolutely correct to say We need to act now to develop the market and bring down costs for energy efficient low-carbon heat. With a target to install 600,000 pumps a year by 2028 there's no time to lose.

— David Symons 2022-06-13

There are not enough engineers in the field from specifying to installing, and a general poor UK habit of slinging in vastly oversized systems not carefully assessed or adjusted. And end users don't yet have the skills to manage heating well for comfort and efficiency.