Air-to-air heat pumps in Harlow
Got a room your radiators never quite reach? Homes and small firms in Harlow and nearby use these air-to-air heat pumps. This is reversible air conditioning under another name: it pulls warmth out of outdoor air in winter, cools in summer, and leaves your plumbing alone.
Ask for a heat pump quote
Your name, number and postcode. We ring you back.
- Heats and cools from one unit
- No water pipes or cylinder
- Sits happily beside a boiler
What is an air-to-air heat pump?
It is a machine that carries heat between outdoor air and room air. Run it one way and you have air conditioning. Run it the other way and the refrigerant soaks up warmth outdoors, even on a cold day, then releases it from the wall unit. Do not confuse it with an air-to-water heat pump, which supplies radiators and a cylinder.
How much does a kWh of heat cost?
The efficiency figure to look for is SCOP, which compares heat out with electricity in across a season. An Energy Saving Trust webinar puts typical systems above 4. Take Ofgem's price cap for October to December 2026, with electricity at 26.32p and gas at 7.97p per kWh, and you get:
| Heating with | One kWh of heat costs |
|---|---|
| A heat pump with a SCOP of 4 | about 6.6p |
| Gas, assuming a 90% efficient boiler | about 8.9p |
| A panel or fan heater | 26.32p |
Beating electric heaters is the easy win. Against gas, the margin is thin and moves whenever the cap does. Ofgem also notes no VAT on electricity from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027. What you actually pay will depend on the model, the weather and your building.
How does it cope with a Harlow winter?
The nearest Met Office climate station we use, at Writtle, about 14 miles east of Harlow, averages highs of about 8°C in December and January and roughly 49 days of air frost a year. A unit gives out less heat as the air gets colder, and now and then the outdoor box pauses to melt its own frost, so it needs somewhere the water can drain away. When you get a quote, ask for the heat output at low temperatures, not just the headline number.
Which homes get the most from it?
- Flats and bungalows relying on panel or storage heaters
- Extensions, conservatories and garden offices with no radiator
- Properties off the gas network, or with no space for a cylinder
- A living room you want warm without running the whole house
If your boiler and radiators are sound, treat it as a helper for particular rooms. We go through the trade-offs in can air conditioning heat your home.
What can it not do?
Hot water, for a start, so the boiler or immersion stays. It also delivers warmth as moving air, so you will hear the fan and miss the glow of a hot radiator. Covering a whole house generally takes one indoor unit per main room, and the house still needs ventilating.
Questions people ask
Does it work below freezing?
Yes, down to the limit on its data sheet, and many models go well below 0°C. Heat output falls as it gets colder.
Could it replace my boiler?
Rarely by itself, since it makes no hot water and needs an indoor unit in each room. Plenty of people run both and use whichever suits the room that day.
So is this just air conditioning?
A reversible air conditioner is an air-to-air heat pump. Sellers tend to pick the name that fits the season.
Does it need planning permission?
Not usually, if your house clears the permitted development conditions, one of which is that it is not used only for cooling. See the planning guide.
Sources
Useful to have ready
A few details about the building let us say more on the first call.
- Your postcode
- House, flat or business premises
- Which rooms, and roughly how big
- Which way the windows face
- Who owns the outside walls, if you rent or lease
Air-to-air heat pumps beyond Harlow
Looking for air-to-air heat pumps outside Harlow? We go to the towns below, and each page has its own planning points. For everything we offer, begin with air conditioning in Harlow.
Worth reading first
Can air conditioning heat your home?
Reversing the system, running costs against gas and electric, and where it falls short.
How much does air conditioning cost?
Every cost from purchase to running it, with the working shown.
Does air conditioning need planning permission?
The national conditions, the noise limit and Harlow's protected streets.
Related work
Air conditioning installation
The whole job, stage by stage, from first visit to handover.
Domestic air conditioning
For the bedroom that stays hot after dark, and rooms like it.
Multi-split air conditioning
Several indoor units on a single outdoor unit.
Conservatory air conditioning
For rooms that bake in July and freeze in January.
More from Harlow Air Conditioning
Office air conditioning
From one room over a workshop to a full floor.
Commercial air conditioning
For shops, salons, cafes, gyms and surgeries.
Server room cooling
For comms cupboards and small server rooms, all year round.
Air conditioning servicing
A yearly clean and check, whoever fitted the system.
Air conditioning repairs
Drips, weak cooling, fault codes and dead units.
Ask us to ring you
Leave a number and we will call to talk about the job. Or ring 01279 744503.