This article is a reply to a question asked by Endo on our air source heat pump review video on YouTube: “I assume these systems need a regular service check. Is it expensive?”
In response, we’ll address points surrounding our air source heat pump warranty and maintenance.
The honest starting point for this post is that I didn’t actually know. At no point during the sales and installation process was it ever mentioned to us that the air source heat pump had to be serviced. It was made out as if there was nothing really to service. This was never raised by other installers that visited our property to quote either.
With the distraction of building our veg patch, Coronavirus and spells of hot weather, the air source heat pump has not been a focal point for us, until we received Endo’s question.
Somewhat coincidentally, we received a call from Global Energy Systems (GES) a few days later as the COVID-19 lockdown in England was easing and our ASHP had been operational for a year, and they wanted to book us in for a service.
I politely declined because we were still in lockdown as a household and didn’t want any unnecessary foot traffic in the house. GES sent us their service pack for future reference.
The service package included the following:
- Clean system filter
- Check system anti-freeze level
- Clean evaporator coil
- Clear debris from fan
- Clear debris from drip tray and ensure water is draining away correctly
- Ensure heat pump system is safe
The price for this is £216/year.
This was followed by the fine print: “GES warranty customers require an Eco Care package to ensure warranty is valid.”
At no point during the sales process were we ever informed of this. To be fair, I think GES were largely transparent in their initial dealings with us and a lot of their financial forecasts and calculations have turned out to be quite accurate, but it is disconcerting to find out that our air source heat pump warranty, which is an expensive piece of kit, could be voided if we don’t use their company to perform the services.
Also, without sounding derogatory, the first five items of the service package are quite straightforward to do yourself, and the last point, ‘ensuring the heat pump is safe’, is just word fluff.
My advice for anyone in the market for an air source heat pump is to ask about the warranty of the unit and if there any service and maintenance contracts or strings attached.