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Thinking about upgrading your home’s heating but worried about the logistics? Switching to low-carbon technology doesn’t just lower your carbon footprint – it completely modernises how your household consumes energy. Now that we’ve explored what day-to-day life is like with clean energy, it’s time to dig into the practical side of making the switch: managing installation, unlocking massive government funding, and future-proofing your heating system.
Colin Thomas, Technical and Innovation Director at Octopus Energy, is on a mission to electrify every household in the country. Drawing on his deep engineering expertise and thousands of home visits, Colin breaks down exactly how affordable a heat pump upgrade can be, how to navigate the paperwork, and what really happens on installation day.
Here is Colin’s insider guide to grants, setup, and system integration.
How much does it cost to install an Octopus heat pump after the £7,500 government grant (£9,000 grant if you’re on LPG or oil)?
- We have worked incredibly hard to bring down the cost of green tech. Because of this, our typical heat pump price is just £4,459 after the standard £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) grant is applied.
- If you are an off-gas grid home currently relying on oil or LPG, the government’s grant boost to £9,000 means upgrading becomes an even bigger financial no-brainer.
- Don’t worry if you are on mains gas – you still get the £7,500 grant to replace your standard gas boiler.
- Every home is different, and while some customers prefer to pay in full, we also offer flexible monthly payment options through our finance partners so you can spread the cost over 5 to 10 years.
- If you have a mortgage with one of the UK’s major lenders, including Lloyds, Halifax, or Virgin Money, you could claim up to £2,000 back when installing a heat pump (or £1,000 for solar and battery). Available via participating banks; eligibility criteria apply.
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How do I easily qualify for the UK Government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme?
- The great news is that the government has made qualifying incredibly simple, and we do all the heavy lifting for you. There are no complex forms for you to fill out; as your MCS-certified installer, Octopus applies for the grant and discounts it directly from your upfront quote.
- To ensure a seamless path to approval, you just need to tick a few basic boxes: You must own the property (or be a private landlord) in England or Wales; you must be replacing an existing fossil fuel system, such as a traditional gas boiler, oil boiler, LPG system, or electric storage heaters; and check eligibility – the scheme is for existing homes or custom self-builds but brand-new developer builds are not eligible.
- You can simply send us your utility bill, and we will capture photos of the fossil fuel boiler as evidence.
What value-adding upgrades are included during a professional home energy survey?
- We never guess when it comes to your comfort. When you book an installation with us, we carry out a comprehensive Home Energy Survey to design a system custom-tailored to your property.
- During this survey, we look at the big picture to unlock maximum efficiency for your home. We calculate the heat required for every room based on your specific bricks, plasterboard, windows, and doors. We then select the best-suited heat pump for your needs, including our award-winning Cosy Heat Pump with intelligent controls.
- We tailor our design to maximise your existing radiators to ensure you achieve a super-efficient system. If you are transitioning from a combi boiler, we locate the perfect spot for your new hot water cylinder so you always have plenty of hot water ready to go.
- We inspect your current electrical setup and consumer unit to ensure your home’s power supply is fully optimised to handle the incoming tech seamlessly.
How long does a heat pump installation take, and what happens on the day?
- A standard home heat pump installation is pretty slick and typically takes just 2 to 4 days from start to finish. Our professional installation teams treat your home with the utmost respect, keeping disruptions to an absolute minimum.
- On installation day, the engineers will safely drain and remove the old fossil fuel boiler. They will then install the new hot water cylinder and position the outdoor heat pump unit, ensuring it strictly meets local regulations so it runs quietly and unobtrusively.
- Finally, we connect the pipework, test the electrics, and power it up! Before we leave, our engineer will walk you through the controls, show you how to use the super smart features like ‘Hush mode’ or smart scheduling, and hand over your official MCS certification.
Can my home’s power supply seamlessly handle a heat pump, an EV charger, and solar panels together?
- Absolutely, yes. This is the dream setup for a modern, home, and the technology is designed to work beautifully together.
- When you combine these technologies, they actually help balance each other out. For example, during the day, your solar panels can directly generate the electricity needed to run your heat pump or charge your EV, bypassing the grid entirely.
- To ensure complete peace of mind, a pre-installation survey will assess the property’s maximum electrical capacity. If any minor electrical upgrades are needed – such as a fuse upgrade or a smart device to stop your EV charger and heat pump from drawing too much power at the same time – Octopus Energy will handle everything.
Curious about upgrading your home energy? Get a custom quote for heat pump installation and see how quickly your investment could pay off.