Energy and insulation

Heat pump installation

Fitting an air-to-water or air-to-air heat pump, and the system changes that go with it.

Post a task Heat pump installation by county

Whether this needs a licence in Ireland

Ireland

Licence required

Registered Electrical Contractor (Safe Electric)

Registered Electrical Contractor (Safe Electric), issued or supervised by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities. Ask for the registration number before the work starts and check it on the public register. Check the register: www.safeelectric.ie

Wording approved by Talqero; not yet reviewed by a solicitor

Commission for Regulation of Utilitieswww.safeelectric.ieChecked 11/10/2026

Heat pump installation: what the job involves

Replacing an oil or gas boiler, storage heaters or a solid-fuel system with an air-to-water heat pump that heats radiators or underfloor pipes and the hot water, or fitting air-to-air units for space heating. The house usually needs to be well insulated first, and the system is sized from its heat loss.

Also asked for as: air to water heat pump · heat pump grant · air source heat pump · heat pump installer · replace oil boiler with heat pump

How the job is usually done

Get a technical assessment or a BER showing the heat loss, and apply for the grant before any work starts.
Do a room-by-room heat-loss calculation to size the heat pump and check which radiators must be larger.
Agree where the outdoor unit goes (noise, distance to neighbours, the front of the house) and where the new cylinder goes, usually in the hot press.
Remove the old boiler, oil tank or storage heaters, and fit the outdoor unit on a base or wall brackets.
Fit the hot water cylinder, buffer tank if needed, pipework, upsized radiators or underfloor manifold, and controls.
Have a Registered Electrical Contractor install the dedicated supply and isolator, and certify it.
Fill, commission and set the weather compensation and schedules, then show the household how to run it.

Heat pump installation: what is included

Usually included

Heat-loss calculation and system design
The heat pump, cylinder, controls and pipework
Commissioning and setting up the controls
Removing the old boiler, if agreed

Usually not included — agree it separately

The technical assessment, unless agreed (SEAI part-funds it)
Insulation and airtightness work the house needs first
Lifting floors for underfloor heating, or screeding over it
Decommissioning and removing an oil tank, unless agreed
Making good plaster and decoration after radiator changes

Materials and who supplies them

Heat pump unit, cylinder and controls, supplied by the installer
Larger radiators or underfloor manifolds where the design calls for them
Electrical supply, isolator and protection, supplied by the electrician
A base or anti-vibration mounts for the outdoor unit

How long it takes

Usually three to five days on site after the assessment and grant approval; longer where radiators change throughout or underfloor heating goes in.

When to book

Plan it in spring or summer, after insulation and before the heating season, since assessment, grant approval and installation together take months.

Heat pump installation: the rules in Ireland

What the official sources say, checked against them on the date shown. A summary, not legal advice — follow the link to read the rule itself.

The dedicated electrical supply for a heat pump is a new circuit, which is Restricted Electrical Works for a Registered Electrical Contractor, who must issue a Completion Certificate.
Applies to: the installer
Safe Electric Ireland, for the Commission for Regulation of Utilities · safeelectric.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
Anybody who installs, services or breaks into a refrigerant circuit containing F-gases must hold the right F-gas certificate; split systems are the usual case.
Applies to: the installer
Environmental Protection Agency — F-gas Regulations · epa.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
Since 27 July 2026, a heat pump at a house is exempt from planning permission if it is no more than 2.5 m² in total, at least 50 cm from the edge of the wall or roof it is on, does not encroach onto a public road, and stays within 43 dB(A) (or 5 dB(A) above background) at the nearest neighbouring home.
Applies to: the homeowner
Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) (No. 5) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 342 of 2026) · dublincity.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
For the grant, the work must be done by a contractor on SEAI’s register for that measure, and only after the grant offer is accepted — work started before approval is not grant-aided.
Applies to: the homeowner and the contractor
Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland · hes.seai.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
The grant must be claimed within eight months of the offer, and a BER by a registered assessor is needed after the works before SEAI pays.
Applies to: the homeowner
Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland · seai.ie · Checked 9 October 2026

Grants

SEAI heat pump system grant
Up to €14,500 for a house (€11,500 for an apartment): up to €10,500 for the heat pump, up to €2,000 for radiator or underfloor upgrades, and a €2,000 boiler scrappage grant when an oil or gas boiler, storage heaters or a solid-fuel system is removed. SEAI announced the scrappage element on 29 September 2026, subject to final implementation arrangements.
Who qualifies: Homes built and occupied before 2021. Homes built before 2007 need a technical assessment first (SEAI contributes €200), unless a valid BER shows a heat loss indicator of 2.3 W/K·m² or less.
seai.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
Boiler scrappage announcement
The €2,000 scrappage element for removing a fossil-fuel or storage-heater system, announced on 29 September 2026.
Who qualifies: Heat pump grant applicants who remove the old system, under SEAI’s final terms.
seai.ie · Checked 9 October 2026
SEAI One Stop Shop
A registered One Stop Shop manages a whole-house upgrade to at least a B BER, handles the grants and deducts them from the price up front.
Who qualifies: Homeowners planning several upgrades together that bring the home to at least a B BER.
seai.ie · Checked 9 October 2026

What heat pump installation costs, and why

What jobs on Talqero came to

Not enough comparable jobs yet to publish a range here. Talqero shows a price range only once at least five comparable jobs, agreed prices or offers exist — a range from fewer would describe a handful of jobs, not the market. Post your job and compare the offers you get.

What affects the price

Heat loss of the house, which sets the heat pump size
How many radiators must be upsized or whether underfloor heating is added
Air-to-water or air-to-air, and the make and output
Cylinder location and pipe runs from the outdoor unit
Removing the old boiler, oil tank or storage heaters
Electrical supply upgrades and the fuse board
VAT: building work on a home is charged at the reduced rate of 13.5% by a VAT-registered business — unless the materials come to more than two-thirds of the price, when Revenue’s two-thirds rule applies the goods rate to the whole job. Ask whether a quote includes VAT.

Paperwork to ask for at the end

The electrician’s Completion Certificate for the new supply
Commissioning record and the heat-loss design
Manufacturer’s warranty registration and service schedule
F-gas record where a refrigerant circuit was made on site
The SEAI declaration of works and a post-works BER for the grant

Safety

Never open the outdoor unit; it holds refrigerant under pressure and live electrics.
Keep the outdoor unit’s air path clear of leaves, snow and garden furniture.
Hot water from a heat pump cylinder must still be heated high enough periodically to control legionella; the installer sets this up.

Heat pump installation: before you hire

Questions to ask a tradesperson

Are you on SEAI’s register for heat pumps?
Will you do a room-by-room heat-loss calculation?
Which radiators need changing, and is that in the price?
Who does the electrical work, and will I get a Completion Certificate?
What will the outdoor unit sound like from my neighbour’s window?
What does the annual service involve?

What you can do yourself

Not a DIY job: it involves a new electrical circuit that only a registered electrician may install, refrigerant handling that needs F-gas certification, and grant conditions.

What to put in your task

How is the house heated now?
What is the home’s current BER, if you know it?
What heats the rooms now?
Roughly how big is the house?
Is there room in the hot press for a larger cylinder?
Have you applied for the SEAI grant or a technical assessment?

Photos that help

The current boiler and its controls
The hot press and cylinder
Where the outdoor unit could go, with the nearest windows and boundary in shot
A typical radiator, with its size measured
The fuse board

Heat pump installation by county

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Questions about heat pump installation

Does heat pump installation need a licence in Ireland?

Yes. Registered Electrical Contractor (Safe Electric), supervised by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities. Source: www.safeelectric.ie. Ask for the registration number and check it on the public register. Wording approved by Talqero; not yet reviewed by a solicitor.

Will a heat pump work in an older house?

It can, if the heat loss is brought down first. That is why SEAI asks for a technical assessment for homes built before 2007, which shows what insulation and ventilation are needed for a heat pump to heat the house well.

Do I need planning permission?

Usually not. Since 27 July 2026 a house heat pump is exempt if it stays within the size, edge distance and noise conditions and does not encroach onto a public road. Protected structures and apartments should check with the council.

Do I need to change my radiators?

Often some of them. A heat pump runs at a lower flow temperature than a boiler, so rooms that lose heat fast may need a larger radiator. The heat-loss design tells you which.

Can I keep my oil boiler as a backup?

Check the grant terms first: the scrappage element is paid for removing the old system. Most well-designed heat pump systems do not need a backup.

Often booked with heat pump installation

Insulation installers