How much is a heat loss survey?

£150 to £300 in Teesside, deducted from the installation price if you go ahead with the work.

Is an EPC not enough?

No. An EPC is a standardised desk assessment and regularly misstates insulation and heat demand. Heat pump sizing needs measured, room-by-room calculations.

How long does the survey take?

One to two hours on site for a typical house, with the design document following afterwards once the calculations are run.

Can I use the design with any installer?

The document is yours. Most installers will want to verify the figures themselves before certifying an installation, which is reasonable practice.

Heat loss survey and system design in Teesside

A room-by-room MCS heat loss survey and heat pump design costs £150 to £300 in Teesside, and that fee is deducted from the installation price if you proceed. It produces the numbers that decide everything else: your calculated heat demand, the design flow temperature, the emitter schedule and a realistic annual running cost.

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What is actually measured

Every heated room is measured and calculated separately: external wall area and construction, glazing type and area, floor and ceiling exposure, air change rate, and the target temperature for that room. Loft and cavity insulation are inspected rather than assumed, because an EPC estimate and reality routinely differ by a third. Existing emitters are measured and their output recalculated at the proposed flow temperature, pipework is identified as microbore, 15mm or 22mm, and cylinder space, electrical capacity and outdoor siting are all assessed. The output is a design document to MCS 3005, not a page of ballpark figures.

Why the design flow temperature is the number to watch

A heat pump's efficiency is a direct function of how hot it has to push the water. Designed at 35 degrees, a modern unit will typically return around four units of heat per unit of electricity across a Teesside year. Designed at 55 degrees, closer to two and a half. That difference is the whole argument about whether heat pumps are cheap or expensive to run, and it is settled at the design stage by radiator sizing rather than by the brand of unit. Any quote that does not state its design flow temperature is hiding the most important thing about itself.

Useful even if you do not proceed

A survey is worth having on its own terms. It tells you what your house actually loses, which rooms are dragging the design temperature up, and what fabric work would move the numbers. Homeowners planning work in stages use it to sequence properly: loft and draughts this year, emitters next, unit after. It also lets you compare competing quotes against your own independent figures instead of the salesman's.

What you receive

Room-by-room heat loss in watts, with total design heat demand.
Recommended heat pump capacity, with the reasoning shown rather than rounded up.
Emitter schedule listing every radiator: keep, upsize, or replace, with sizes.
Design flow temperature and the predicted seasonal efficiency at it.
Annual running cost estimate with the tariff and assumptions stated.
Cylinder, electrical and siting notes, including anything that would block the job.

Ready to price the work itself? See air source installation or, for older solid-wall property, the older homes guide.