Experts warn heat pumps are too expensive for many homes to meet net zero targets

This article is correct. And it’s not just landlords its homeowners too that are not taking them up. There is a boiler upgrade grant and some mortgage providers are offering 0% interest further advance, yet up take is low. Why? Because…

Heat pumps are one type of solution. And are not really suitable for many retrofits without numerous caveats. The cost of running them is not always cheaper than gas/oil. It’s a misconception that a heat pump is the right solution for the majority of houses.

Currently to make the green step work you really need Heat Pump + Solar + EV and a large grant. How many houses tick that box?

To achieve 50% of homes having heat pumps by 2040, they need to build, I guess they need to build 15 million new homes or demolish many of the pre-1960s housing stock.

Many older properties were not designed for modern living and weren’t built to last 100s of years.

Stabilise the population and let’s start demolishing dreadful terraced houses built for workers over 100 years ago. Replace them with modern homes, preferably built with sustainable, eco friendly products.

Heat pumps also do not have the heat output of a gas boiler, so although homes will be cold, occupants will be warmed by thought of having met net zero.
Meanwhile, in China....

I have a 1930s red brick 3 bed semi with a lovely garden. Why would I want that eyesore??

Reply to the comment left by Cider Drinker at 06/03/2025 - 11:17
It's the modern homes that are not built to last hundreds of years, both oak frames and traditional double bricks will happily last that long.

Reply to the comment left by Cider Drinker at 06/03/2025 - 11:17
Er, where are the private homeowners who live in these terraced houses going to live while their homes are demolished and rebuilt? And where is the money going to come from?

I just insured my Edwardian-era 160m2 4-bed solid-wall detached house in Reading, which has a 100 foot garden and is probably worth £625,000. The BCIS website said the rebuild cost is £649,000, so the land is effectively with £zero. Why would I demolish this house and rebuild it for a higher cost than it's worth, just to meet some fanciful net zero target?

The obvious method is not to demolish but insulate the heck out of it, but even this is massively expensive, and where do I live in the meantime? The cost is money I simply do not have, on top of paying a mortgage and my living costs and trying to save for a pension that the thieving Chancellor will steal from my descendants if I am unlucky enough to die before I can spend it all or give it away.

As for rental properties, achieving EPC Level C by 2028 is going to be impossible for many hundreds of thousands of landlords, for starters because there are simply not enough experienced builders. The Government is going to have to change its policy, or there will be thousands and thousands of people living on the streets as landlords sell up.

The Climate Committee is advisory. Secondly Dear Ed stated in a recent Parliamentary committee meeting on Net Zero that he "would not force people to have heat pumps instead of efficient gas boilers. Technology and prices will get better." He also said UK will not solve the climate crisis, we only produce less than 1% of emissions, but we can lead the world, show the way and the world will follow". This is the mutterings of a deranged fool. He needs to understand that most of the world doesn't care what you do Ed. In fact seeing the economic destruction you are causing, most are turning away from your plan. You are having the opposite effect. Heat pumps produce low grade heat with conventional radiators operating at 40-45C instead of 65C. So for the same heat output you will need to double the size of all your radiators. Heat pumps are best suited to underfloor heating in continuous operation. At low outside temperatures the electric heater kicks in basically turning the heat pump into and electric boiler with associated high running costs. Bear in mind we have the highest electricity costs in the world. Due directly to the massive rates paid under the CfD contracts to private enterprises to build solar parks and wind farms. So not only do we as taxpayers pay the electricity suppliers 2-3 times the normal cost for their power but we then pay again in the high electricity price to refill the Government coffers. Brilliant, a hidden subsidy scheme that will baffle the majority of the public and make it look like you are saving the planet and doing this to help them, rather than pursuing your EcoZealot ideology.

Reply to the comment left by Puzzler at 06/03/2025 - 14:43
And the almost 24hour noise. I have lived in the topics and surrounding ACs mean you have to run your own as open windows mean nighttime whirring and kick starting of the machines frequently.