In the summer of 2025, Mitsubishi Electric and Opinion Matters conducted a survey of 2,000 homeowners in the UK. Only 5% of those surveyed currently heat their home with an air source or ground source heat pump. That figure is among the lowest in Europe.
To promote the findings of the survey and to raise the awareness of air source heat pumps I did a radio day at the end of October. This involved me sitting in a radio booth for 5-6 hours being dialled into local radio stations all over the country for a range of different interviews on the matter.
It was a fantastic day.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is £7,500 of ‘free money’ from the government
George Clarke TV presenter, architect, writer and Ecodan Ambassador
Accessible news
The reason I love doing radio interviews so much, is because the presenters are so ‘on it’.
They just cut right to the chase and because they are representing the voice of their listeners they simplify, what can often be very complicated issues, very quickly and make them very accessible.
They want to know about the subject, the benefits and any potential issues fast, to get a message across.
They are the ultimate communicators for their local communities.
My key messages that I’ve waxed lyrical about for many years were:
- We need to stop burning stuff
- We need to reduce our reliance on gas
- The government needs to reduce the unfair levies on the cost of electricity. The current levies add £140 in ‘tariffs’ to annual electricity bills, but only £50 to our gas bill. Gas in therefore cheaper. If we want to move to ‘electrification’ then we need to take steps to make electricity the same price or cheaper than gas. Tackling this unequal levy is the first step our government could take.
- A BIG ONE FOR ME - gas maybe cheaper than electricity at the moment, but an air source heat pump is three times more efficient than a gas boiler. This is a very important fact that so few people are aware of. For every KW of electricity you buy, you get three times the amount of heat output from an heat pump than you would from a gas boiler!
Raising awareness of the government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme, where you can get up to £7,500 from the government (that’s a free grant not a loan!) to replace your current gas boiler with an air source heat pump.
Ask yourself this
My big ask to everyone listening was very simple.
If your existing gas boiler is 10-15 years old, it may still work, but it is staggeringly inefficient. The component parts will be old and may not be working as well as they should be. That means it is costing you more money than it should be to heat your house.
However, the reality is nobody changes their boiler until it’s broken. Then the day it breaks you go into panic mode and all you’re thinking about is calling a local gas engineer to take out the old boiler and replace it with a new one.
It’s completely understandable that, at that point in time, you are not in the right headspace to be thinking about making the transition from a gas boiler to an air source heat pump. You’re just thinking “get me a new boiler and get my heating back on”.
Also, our gas boilers tend to break when we turn our heating back on as we approach the winter months.
That means it is breaking when you need it most.
So, my only ask to the radio-listening public was, if your gas boiler is old and inefficient and coming to the end of its life, please consider moving to an air source heat pump system.
It’s all about getting ahead of the problem. You shouldn’t really wait until your gas boiler dies. I changed my system over in the summer and I did it when I didn’t need my heating on.
Even if your gas boiler is still clinging onto life, make enquiries about air source heat pumps as soon as you possibly can.
As I’ve said. GET AHEAD OF THE PROBLEM.
Do your homework
Contact an air source heat pump manufacturer, such as Mitsubishi Electric (with their award-winning Ecodan heat pump range), and arrange for an installer to visit your home, design the new system for you and have him or her come up with a price well in advance of any problem arising.
At least then you’ve put in the time and work, and you know where you stand with the new system.
You can weigh up all of the benefits, you can consider the costs and the advantage of having a free £7,500 from the government and then, in a very calm and considered way, make the decision to move from burning fossil-fuels in an energy-inefficient gas boiler, to using clean, green renewable energy with a 3 times more efficient air source heat pump.
No panic, no drama, no stress.
A very calm transition to a better form of home heating technology. Change before your gas boiler dies and change during the warmer months when you don’t need your heating on.
Countering misinformation
And just to bust a few myths about air source heat pumps that I was asked by the radio presenters on the day:
- Air source heat pumps aren't as efficient a gas boiler
– 100% not true. In fact, they are at least three times more efficient on average. - Air source heat pumps are difficult to install
– Not true either. An air source heat pump can be installed in as little as 2 days. - I’ll need to change my radiators with a new system
– With new high temperature air source heat pumps you will not need to change your radiators. However, if your radiators are undersized and are struggling to give you the heat output you need in each room you, then an approved installer may recommend you upgrade them. - I live in an very old house and an ASHP won’t work
– Now this could be true. Whilst the new generation of high temperature air source heat pumps perform very well in old buildings, if the overall thermal performance of your house is very bad (draughty rooms, air gap around windows, no insulation) then an air source heat pump may not work as well as it would, if you didn’t have all the drafts.
This will be discovered during the installer’s site visit and design stage. The thermal efficiency of your home and suitability of your radiators can be established, so you will know very quickly whether an air source heat pump is an option for you.
Leaky buildings waste energy
The truth is, if your building is thermally poor and it’s losing too much heat through the structural fabric of your home, then you should be installing insulation and upgrading your windows anyway as soon as possible, whether you have an existing gas boiler or you are considering an air source heat pump.
This is called a ‘fabric-first approach’. Improve the thermal performance of your home as much as you can. That means when you do move to an air source heat pumps are it will be even more efficient!
Moving to an air source heat pumps is 100% the right thing to do, whether you do so now or in the future.
I made the transition 7 years ago and I’ve never looked back. The system works really well, and I never even have to think about it.
I’ve never had a single problem with the equipment or the installation. My home is cosy, warm and I’m not burning fossil fuels.
My heating bills have reduced too because of the system being three times more efficient than my old gas boiler.
And because I switched energy providers to a company that only supplies electricity from renewable sources (solar and wind)
I’m doing my bit for the planet too. It’s win, win, win!
George Clarke is a TV presenter, architect, writer and Ecodan Ambassador
