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LegendaryCouscous Newest Member · 11 hours ago11 hr

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How to do this heat pump thing cost effectively?

Makes install super easy but also makes long term maintenance hard and expensive by locking you in to the manufacturers proprietary parts (and likely approved service network). While it might be a bit more labour to install, going with off-the-shelf multiple source parts for as much of the system as possible will likely save you headaches down the line if you are someone who wants to get into the detail/wants flexibility in who you choose to do servicing. If you are completely non-technical and want to pay for the approved service/oem parts then the integrated stuff can make sense.

By -rick- · 29 minutes ago29 min
DNO costs - Advise needed please

A 12kw heat pump for a new build is a lot. What's the size of the property? Minimum/regs insulation or a higher standard?

What's the size of the existing 3-phase?

I wouldn't be surprised if your overall energy estimates are pushing the DNO to overspec your needs and you couldn't just get away with sharing the existing supply with no upgrade at all. You have a lot of solar going in and if needed you could likely leverage that + batteries to offset peak demand if it's borderline. Some inverters will have a mode to allow this (ie, it will use power from the battery to limit the overall draw on the utility) and if not then there are plenty of other options if you can redirect some of the 16k into solar stuff.

If the current spec is minimum insulation then bumping that to high spec might cost a few k extra but reduce energy requirements and long term bills.

Not done this myself but DNOs tend to get quite concerned when you say 'workshop' and they tend to want to specify the supply to power everything at once whereas for a hobbyist/one man small business it's unlikely you use more than 2 machines at once.

By -rick- · 36 minutes ago36 min
Need heat pump install in Somerset area, any reccomendations?

Not directly relevant or anything to do with us, but just to introduce Otter South West
When we moved here (South Somerset) in Oct '25 we inherited a Daikin ASHP which we decided we'd like serviced and they are one of the local approved co's...
But the point I wanted to make was that the guy Chris who came was professional, extremely knowledgeable, helpful and did a great job for us well beyond a service. If you need someone like that then you could ask them if they could help...

By MPx · 4 hours ago4 hr
DNO costs - Advise needed please

I had a similar initial quote and quibbled it it came down. Read up on what should and should be chargeable on the no-contestable sometimes some costs of upgrading which should not be charged to the customer are slipped in. There are some good threads here already to assist with this. For the contestable we made some really good savings doing dig and duct ourselves and then finding suitable licensed contractor for cable install and meter works. Ended up paying roughly half. All in.

Not actually finished yet so there could be some surprises.

By BadgerBodger · 4 hours ago4 hr
How to do this heat pump thing cost effectively?

Size for heating not cooling, you will regret the higher running cost of running a oversized heat pump. UFH in screed is a huge buffer of heat and cold. If you peak cooling is 5.5kW that heat demand can be spread over many hours.

Example I removed a 6kW and installed a 4kW in January this year. I was getting CoPs between 7 and 8 this summer doing cooling. This time last year doing heating my CoP 3.72 for the month, due to very light heat loads and plenty of standby hours, same house, same plumbing a CoP of 5.15 this year with the 4kW heat pump.

With 192m² of UFH your volume of water is huge and would prevent short cycles. Unless you want to zone every room. Your fan coils are constant water flow and variable fan speed based on room temp.

Cooling via UFH is no issue as long as you don't force 7 degs water through it. Run between 12 and 16 degs in the UFH loops you have cooling.

Pre plumber cylinders are a waste of money for a heat pump as they have lots of stuff you don't need.

You can spec the kit you need for under half that if you eliminate all the things you don't need.
I never bothered with a grant, don't believe they should exist, they don't add value. I did it DIY.

My view
Direct cylinder heat via immersion. You make it smaller and heat hotter. Charge with solar an ToU tariff.

Heat pump to direct to UFH to heat and cool. No buffer, house ideally a single zone, no buffer. If you are desperate for room temperature control gets an Adia Thermal. If you want fan coils get ones that run from the same flow temp that you should flow through your UFH in cooling mode

By JohnMo · 4 hours ago4 hr

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BuildHub Guide: Information about the site : Introduce Yourself

Build Design, Planning, Finance and Legal

House Construction & Structural Issues

Building Trades

Environmental, Alternative & Green Building Methods

Self Build & DIY: General

Self Build Regional Groups