Heat loss surveys & system design
The unglamorous 45 minutes that decides whether your heat pump is brilliant or disappointing. We measure, calculate and design to Heat Geek standards, free with every quote.
Book a Free SurveySizing is everything
Every disappointing heat pump story you've heard, high bills, cold rooms, noisy cycling, traces back to a system that was never properly designed. Installers who guess the size from bedroom count alone fit units that are too big (so they cycle on and off, wearing themselves out and wasting electricity) or too small (so they run flat out and still fall short on the coldest days).
A real heat loss survey calculates what each room actually loses in watts, from measured wall areas and construction, window sizes and glazing, floors, ceilings, insulation and ventilation. Those numbers set the heat pump size, the radiator sizes and the design flow temperature. Get them right and the system runs low and slow, sipping electricity at high efficiency for twenty years.
This survey-first approach is the standard championed by Heat Geek, whose training our engineers follow, design for the lowest workable flow temperature, prove it with numbers, and never size by rule of thumb. It's also why we can put a fixed price on your quote and stand behind the performance.
Rule-of-thumb install
- Sized by bedroom count
- High flow temperature “to be safe”
- Short-cycling, higher bills
- Radiators never checked
Survey-first install
- Sized from measured heat loss
- Lowest workable flow temp
- Steady, efficient running
- Every emitter verified
What we do during the survey
Measure every room
Dimensions, wall construction, windows, floors, loft insulation, the real fabric of your home, not assumptions.
Calculate room-by-room heat loss
Each room's demand in watts at design outdoor temperature, following MCS calculation standards.
Check every radiator
Existing emitters verified against their room's demand at low flow temperature, upgrades only where the numbers say so.
Design for efficiency
Heat pump model, cylinder, controls and target flow temperature chosen for the best achievable SCOP.
Fixed quote, explained
An itemised price with the £7,500 grant deducted, and a proper explanation of every line on it.
Survey & design questions
Is the heat loss survey really free?+
Yes, when it's part of a heat pump quote. We carry the cost because the survey is how we produce a price we can genuinely fix. If you want a standalone paid survey and design report to take elsewhere (for a self-managed or third-party installation), we offer that too, call us to discuss.
How is this different from an online calculator?+
Online tools (including our own instant estimate) work from averages: property type, bedrooms, bathrooms. A heat loss survey measures your actual home, wall construction, window areas, insulation, room sizes, air change rates, and calculates each room's demand in watts. The online estimate gets you in the right ballpark; the survey gets you the right system.
What is a flow temperature and why does it matter?+
A boiler typically sends water to your radiators at 70°C+. A well-designed heat pump system runs at 35–45°C, and the lower the flow temperature, the higher the efficiency (SCOP) and the lower your bills. Good design, right-sized emitters, proper zoning, weather compensation, is what makes low flow temperatures possible. That's the whole game.
What do I get at the end of the survey?+
A fixed, itemised quote built on the survey's numbers: the exact heat pump model and size, cylinder specification, any radiator changes (listed individually), the design flow temperature, and the price with the £7,500 grant deducted. You'll understand not just what we recommend but why.
My home is old / solid-walled, is a heat pump even viable?+
Often yes, sometimes not yet, and the survey is precisely how you find out. Solid-wall and older homes have higher heat losses, so honesty matters: if the numbers say insulate first, we'll tell you that instead of selling you an oversized system. No guesswork either way.
Book the survey, the rest follows from it
Free with every heat pump quote, anywhere in Staffordshire.