Is your heat pump working? 3 easy fixes

When the cold weather hits, there is nothing worse than discovering your heat pump isn’t working as it should be. Here is a troubleshooting guide you can do yourself before you call.

1. Is there any heat at all?

• First check the power in your home. Is that still working? Turn your thermostat up by 3 degrees then check your radiators to see that they are on and see if you can feel any heat. Be careful not to turn your thermostat up too high as this can affect your heat pump. If in doubt, turn them up so you can be sure if they are working or not. Check at least one other radiator.

• Check your heat pump to see if there is a red light or fault showing? If there is, try resetting it.

Still not working? Call us on 0330 022 0480 or email support@renewableheat.com.

• Feel heat in some rooms and not others? Try bleeding your radiators in the room that isn’t heating up to see if that solves the problem.

• Is your heat pump making funny noises? If it sounds like a squealing or grinding sound this is not a good sign. Switch off your system and call us 0330 022 0480 or email support@renewableheat.com.

Still not working? Keep troubleshooting.

#2. Is the fan running?

• Can you hear the fan turn on when you increase the temperature? If you can’t then check that your heat pump is getting power. Check the wiring to see if it looks sound. Is the thermostat firmly attached to the wall? If you have batteries in your thermostat check that they don’t need replaced.

• Next check your fuse box. Make sure the breaker wasn’t tripped and there isn’t a blown fuse. If the breakers have tripped, switch your heat pump on and off to reset it. If it trips again you need to call us on 0330 022 0480 or email support@renewableheat.com.

• If your fan is running, try turning on the emergency heat. Make sure that you set the temperature 2 or 3 degrees higher to see if you can feel the heating come on. If you can feel the heat come on, that means the problem lies with your outside unit.

#3. Checking your outside unit

Before checking your outdoor unit, turn off your Emergency Heat and return your thermostat back down to the normal “Heat” function. Now you’re ready to troubleshoot your outside unit.

• Clean away any leaves or rubbish from your heat pump. Look carefully for grass and leaves that could have been caught.

Pro-top tip: Gently hose down your unit in autumn to rinse away dirt and debris. Also, make sure you have your heat pump serviced annually. It prevents small problems becoming much bigger problems in the future.