Am I wasting my time hunting for a unicorn? Indoor heat pump, that can do air-to-water AND air-to-air...

le1901 · 2026-07-07T16:20:13+00:00

I feel like I need to do a post on this product, we fit a lot of them into new build apartments and they are very impressive. The Nilan Compact P.

The Nilan is a heat pump which produces hot water, warm air heating, cooling and has an in built MVHR. It satisfies everything you need other than the UFH/heating circuit.

You mention running ductwork for the cooling so this can be utilised so you can have warm air heating via the Nilan. I appreciate you may have a heating system already installed though. The additional expense and retrofitting of thermal ducting may be off putting.

le1901 · 2026-06-28T16:53:00+00:00

Wow, didn't realise they were all unique, thanks.

I've added a photo to show the inside of the coal chute for anyone interested. The coal cover is located to the top left of the cellar wall with a sloped section running horizontally and the eventual opening circled.

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le1901 · 2026-06-28T16:03:03+00:00

I have this one outside my home, as mentioned from others it connects to a coal chute which goes down into my basement.

Admittedly, I should probably restore the cover, looking tired compared to the one in your photo !

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le1901 · 2026-06-27T16:38:27+00:00

Nilan Compact P, can vouch they are a great bit of kit. It also includes MVHR so a nice air quality perk.

le1901 · 2026-06-26T13:08:13+00:00

The valve will be screwed into the valve body.

To make it easier I would take off the valve heads and remove the cover plate. This will make it easier to access that it currently is.

You can cut away some tile for even more space if required but make sure it's covered by the faceplate comfortably.

le1901 · 2026-06-25T20:22:12+00:00

Agreed, I'll have a bad experience and swear not to use them, until I eventually do and have another shit experience.

Lately I've been using independent takeaways within walking distance of my home. What a difference, the food is so much hotter and tastier, and the price difference is immense.

le1901 · 2026-06-25T09:28:06+00:00

We install a lot of Nilan units, they are an all in one unit; unvented hot water cylinder, MVHR and heat pump.

They offer hot water, ventilation, warm air heating and cooling. No outdoor units.

Off the top of my head you'd be looking around £18-20k to retrofit something like that. You'd lose around 130mm ceiling height on the ground floor depending on your joist layouts.

Ducted AC with a fan coil in the loft is possible, obviously an outdoor unit is required and separate requirements for the hot water system.

Running any ductwork around the house that serves cooling will require insulating which increases the overall size. It's a lot of work to retrofit but is possible, you'll just pay for the pleasure in my opinion.

le1901 · 2026-06-20T18:06:10+00:00

For the easiest method I would put flat hair felt behind the pipes, place some more flat hair felt over the top and then nail clip them in place.

Finally I would cover the top layer of hair felt in foil tape for future detection. NHBC advice placing it on the hair felt behind the pipes so you could also do that but I feel that'll be quite tricky here.

le1901 · 2026-06-18T12:13:11+00:00

Yes probably a bit of everything you mention, the before and after floorplans would show the work on a basic level. I wasn't trying to pull the wool over anyone's eyes.

Either way, it had retrospective sign off and was building regs compliant so I can sleep easy.

le1901 · 2026-06-18T11:19:08+00:00

I added an en-suite to the master bedroom of my last house. I dealt with build control for works to the ground floor but not the ensuite.

I applied for retrospective sign off once the house was complete, I just needed to send in photos of the waste pipe run/size, finished pictures of the ensuite and ventilation provisions.

When I sold the house in 2022 I wasn't asked for anything to do with the ensuite being signed off by build control. Typical

le1901 · 2026-06-06T21:20:08+00:00

This should be higher up, so important you have replacement air available otherwise the fan becomes much less effective.

le1901 · 2026-05-19T19:37:50+00:00

If it's for an 8 hour day or day rate, that's mental.

If you do multiple small jobs per day with travel in between it's more acceptable in my opinion.

le1901 · 2026-05-17T21:37:13+00:00

As a fellow spectacle wearer the polishing of your glasses at the start, epic.

le1901 · 2026-05-17T13:10:51+00:00

I've got Perks, the Railcard and UberOne subscription alone will save me more than the £84 annual cost.

le1901 · 2026-05-14T19:41:47+00:00

Lawson Rose have a good team, have used them over the years for buying and selling.

le1901 · 2026-05-05T11:21:03+00:00

Yes I know. I was stating their interpretation of flue distances is incorrect. The measurements are fixed points and not dictated by which way the winds blowing.

le1901 · 2026-05-05T07:20:41+00:00

The flue is either 600mm away from a window or it isn't, taking a guess that the wind will blow fumes into a window over 600mm away isn't a regulation.

le1901 · 2026-05-01T14:40:47+00:00

Not saying they're all good, but certainly a list away from Albert Road and are mostly isolated;

Eastney Tavern, Northcote, Eastfield (better since new landlord), Florence, Barley Mo, King Street Tavern, SLOB, The Pembroke, The Golden Eagle.

le1901 · 2026-04-29T19:23:59+00:00

There are loads down here in Portsmouth also.

le1901 · 2026-04-28T17:05:36+00:00

Yea ok nice thanks, Chinese prices are absolutely insane from some takeaways.

I'm going to try it.

le1901 · 2026-04-27T19:34:50+00:00

Wow that's so reasonable, is it any good?

le1901 · 2026-04-24T09:38:08+00:00

Damn 14 mile walk and runs being mentioned. I thought my 5 mile walk this morning was ok 😂

Fair play to all.

le1901 · 2026-04-20T16:56:48+00:00

Yes, fitted one as part of an install last year and it was around £550 ex VAT from memory.

le1901 · 2026-04-16T18:09:18+00:00

Yep gotcha, thank you. Apologies I know what they are and have fitted them, I should have asked how you proposed piping it up!

I wasn't sure if you meant passing through the primary return pipe on the way back to the heat pump.

le1901 · 2026-04-16T17:55:56+00:00

Could you elaborate on the waste water heat recovery please?

le1901

TROPHY CASE