Are you looking to ‘green up’ your home? Then solar panels and heat pumps are likely at the top of your list. For many people, the first question is, “Which one should I get first?” instead of, “Which one should I get?” There isn’t a clear answer to this question, but there are a few sensible considerations that should help you narrow down the options.
Get Insulation Before Any Equipment
First, ask yourself how well your home is insulated. This is a very important consideration. The efficiency of a heat pump is directly related to how well your home retains heat. If your insulation is sub-par, your heat pump will be overworked and your home may never be comfortable. So if your insulation is poor, get that done before either solar panels or a heat pump.
What a Heat Pump Needs from You
A heat pump literally pumps heat from the outside air at a low temperature and circulates it to your radiators (or underfloor heating) after it is sufficiently heated to a higher temperature. The important aspect of this explanation is that a heat pump works on electricity. While heat pumps provide a pathway to use lower temperature heat in the air, they do not lessen electricity use in the home at all. In fact, a heat pump will increase your home’s electricity demand.
Solar panels can help in this situation. If you have solar panels that are producing electricity during the day, then a pump can use those solar panels directly, rather than needing to use electricity from the grid. The two work very well in conjunction with one another. So, if you are considering getting a heat pump as well, then getting solar panels first may make the need to get a pump as well feel less needed.
The requirements for solar from your home
To fit solar panels you will need a roof that gets direct sunlight, is unobstructed to the south as well as being fairly flat. If your roof has that, then solar is likely the easiest and most convenient of the two options to fit and install. Also, solar panels don’t touch your heating system, then there is much less disruption.
So which one first?
A few things tend to indicate one or the other:
- if your current boiler is old, and is close to needing to be replaced anyway, that’s normally when people go for a heat pump, and it doesn’t matter if the solar is already in place
- if your roof is well suited for solar, and your heating system is reasonably fine for now, going for solar first means that it’s already done by the time you move to a heat pump
- if your insulation is not sorted, that comes in first before either one of them
There is no requirement to do them both together, and plenty of homes have one without the other. If you are planning to have both eventually, think about the order now. This will prevent you from having to do work around the consumer unit and wiring, which tends to be touched by both.