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Heat pumps offer a sustainable and efficient way to heat your home by extracting heat from the environment, even on cold days. They work by absorbing heat from the air or ground and transferring it indoors to heat your home. This process is more energy-efficient than traditional heating systems, reducing your carbon footprint and lowering your energy bills.
Installed outside your house, a heat pump is a small machine which can heat and cool your home in place of traditional home heating systems.
In the winter, the heat pump pulls warm air inside your home to heat it, while in the summer it acts in reverse and pushes the warm air outside for your home to remain cool.
In essence, it merely redistributes heat found either inside or outside your home, depending on the season.
The technology is very similar to that used by your home refrigerator, which absorbs the air outside it before cooling it.
There are two main types of heat pumps found in Ireland, these are:
An air source heat pump is the most common heat pump found in Ireland. It works in the following fashion:
These are relatively easy to install as they do not require much renovation work inside the home to be installed.
Within this category lies two other types of air source heat pumps, they are:
This type of pump is used to heat homes only and not hot water tanks. A fan circulates the warm air produced by the pump inside the home.
These are designed to send the heat generated to an existing water-based unit of the home, like a hot water tank or the radiators. They are very effective with underfloor heating over traditional radiators. That is because the heat is produced at a lower temperature than a standard gas central heating.
They are also a good alternative to immersion heaters, which can be costly and inefficient to run.
Sometimes referred to as geothermal heat pumps, ground source heat pumps are also installed outside the home but use the heat stored in the ground versus compressing the air.
They are a little more complicated to install as it involves laying pipework in the ground, however, they are a more reliable method as ground temperatures are more consistent than air temperatures.
Think Before Choosing Ground Source Heat Pumps! Although the pipes for ground source heat pumps can be installed vertically, they require you to have plenty of garden space available. This is to allow the required pipes to be laid horizontally where they can be most effective.
You can expect to pay anything between €10,000 to €20,000 depending on various factors.
Below, you'll find a breakdown of the average cost of different types of heat pump systems:
| Heat Pump | Costs | Heat Source | Heats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air to Air | €1,000-€18,000 | Air from outside your home | The air inside your home |
| Air to Water | €12,000-€18,000 | Air from outside your home | Your water, your home |
| Ground Source | €17,000-€28,000 | From below the ground | Your water, your home |
An exact amount for how much installing a heat will cost will depend on multiple factors, including:
Despite the high cost, there are SEAI grants available for heat pump installation, which can reduce the cost significantly. Read more about SEAI grants in the next chapter.
Many companies who specialise in heat pump installation can offer you a quote on how much it will cost to install a system on your property.
Some popular Irish companies include:
The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) offer grants towards the installation of heat pumps as part of their Individual Energy Upgrade Grants scheme.
Grant amounts range from €3,500 to €6,500 depending on the type of home and heat pump you are looking to install.
If you are opting to use the SEAI grant scheme, you must use a certified contractor to receive the grant.
Visit the SEAI contractor page to find the one nearest your home.
| System Type | Grant Amount for Apartment | Grand Amount for Any House |
|---|---|---|
| Air to Water heat pump system | €4,500 | €6,500 |
| Ground Source to Water heat pump system | €4,500 | €6,500 |
| Exhaust Air to Water heat pump system | €4,500 | €6,500 |
| Water to Water heat pump system | €3,500 | €6,500 |
| Air to Air heat pump system | N/A | €3,500 |
| Technical Assessment | €200 | |
Source: SEAI Last Updated: January 2025
To apply for a heat pump grant through the SEAI, you need to follow these steps:
The average household could save between €500 and €1,500 per year by using a heat pump.
While the upfront costs of installing a heat pump can be high, the impact they can have on your energy bills is an offset to their initial expensive installation as well as being an efficient energy-saving tool.
How much you save is dependent on multiple factors such as your average energy consumption, property size etc, but the biggest impact will be seen in your heating costs as a heat pump eliminates your need to heat your home using fossil fuels such as oil and gas.
Calculate the annual kWh consumption of your heat pump
If you are still not sure whether to invest in a heat pump, here are some pros and cons to help you with your decision.
Here are some of the advantages of heat pumps in Ireland:
Like anything, there are always some drawbacks, here are some of the disadvantages of heat pumps in Ireland:
If your home has a BER lower than a B2, you may not get the full benefit from your heat pump system.
Therefore, it may be worth investing in further home improvements such as insulation, underfloor heating and hot water system to get the full benefit of your new heat pump.
Yes. With the right modifications, you can integrate a heat pump into your current heating system. We recommend getting advice from your plumber or heat pump installer to see what changes are necessary.
Radiators can be used with heat pumps, but they may need to be exchanged to get the full benefit due to a heat pump's steadier, lower temperature distribution. Your heat pump installer will recommend any changes needed.
Read More of Our Home Heating Articles
The services and products mentioned on this website may only represent a small selection of the options available to you. Selectra encourages you to carry out your own research and seek advice if necessary before making any decisions. We may receive commission from selected partner providers on sales of some products and/or services mentioned within this website. Our website is free to use, and the commission we receive does not affect our opinion or the information we provide.
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