Heat Pumps in Istanbul: We Settle the Right Vaillant System for Your Home at the Survey

On Istanbul heat pump projects you have to start with the climate. An air source heat pump does not create heat; it takes it from the outside air and carries it into the home, and as the outside temperature falls it uses more electricity for the same comfort. Istanbul's winter is favourable in that respect, because long spells of deep sub-zero temperatures are not the city's typical winter picture. That means the unit spends most of the season in a comfortable operating range. Even so, we choose capacity for the coldest day of the year rather than an average winter day, because a heat pump is only as useful as its ability to cover the hardest day. If you want to get to the bottom of the subject, our guide to what a heat pump is is a good starting point.

The second deciding factor is the building type. In detached houses and villas with gardens, finding a spot for the outdoor unit is usually easy; the unit goes in the garden or on a suitable external wall, positioned so that nothing blocks the airflow. In flats the job turns much more into a layout problem: the size of the balcony, the distance from the unit to the neighbours' windows, the look of the façade and where the condensate will drain all have to be solved one by one. Written permission from the building management is required for any work touching a communal area or the building's façade. You obtain that permission; at the survey we show you which points it will cover and where the unit can sit. If no suitable place emerges, we say so at the start rather than forcing the project.

The third heading, and often the most critical, is the existing pipework. Newer homes with underfloor heating run at a low flow temperature and suit a heat pump naturally. A significant share of Istanbul's homes, though, are heated by radiators, and radiators want a higher water temperature for the same comfort. This is exactly where aroTHERM pro's ability to deliver flow temperatures up to 70 °C becomes decisive: moving to a heat pump without stripping out the existing radiator system is possible on most projects. In homes with a high heat loss, aroTHERM plus and its 75 °C come into play. Even so, not every room's radiator surface will cover the new temperature regime; we decide that with a room-by-room calculation. For the detail on the R290 model, read our aroTHERM pro review.

In homes with a gas connection the question is usually the same: should I get rid of the combi boiler? It is not compulsory. A hybrid set-up running the heat pump alongside the existing boiler rests on the heat pump covering most of the season, with the boiler supporting it on the coldest days or when hot water demand is heavy. Whether that makes sense depends on the home's heat loss, the state of the pipework and the age of the boiler. If you want to compare the two systems in your own mind, our heat pump vs combi boiler comparison tackles exactly that question; for work on the boiler side, see our combi boiler installation service.

Domestic hot water and the control unit are part of the same project. In homes that want hot water from the heat pump, the uniSTOR RW cylinders built for heat pumps, in the 200–500 litre range, come into play; the volume is chosen from the number of bathrooms and how the household uses it. We manage the system with the myVAILLANT Smart or sensoCOMFORT controls and set the heating curve around how the home actually behaves; that setting has a direct effect on the comfort you get and the electricity you use. The practical side of heat pump installation in Istanbul is what most often gets overlooked. The outdoor unit has to sit on a base that keeps vibration out of the building, with clearance front and back for airflow and service access left unobstructed. The condensate has to drain into a line that will not freeze in winter. On the electrical side the consumer unit capacity, the fuses and the cable sizes are checked; depending on capacity and model, a three-phase supply may come into play. These are all items looked at one by one at the survey, and none of them should turn into a surprise later. We have gathered the pre-installation checklist in our article on heat pump installation requirements.

Let us be clear on cost: there are no prices on this page, because a heat pump price is not a ready-made list. The capacity, the monobloc or split preference, the cylinder volume, the control unit and the work to be done on the pipework all change the total directly. The logic of the payback calculation is this: you compare the investment cost of the system against the difference between the annual energy cost of your current heating method and the cost you reach with a heat pump. We set out step by step how to build that calculation from your own consumption in our article on heat pump costs and savings; the numbers for your own home we settle after the survey.

EFE YAPI VAİLLANT is an authorised Vaillant dealer. What we do is clear: product sales, surveys, system design and installation across Türkiye. What we do not do is equally clear: we do not offer standalone maintenance, servicing or fault-finding. Our installation service covers every province of Türkiye; for our Istanbul-specific district pages, see Ümraniye and Ataşehir. We supply the product anywhere in Türkiye and carry out the survey and installation with our own team. You can review the models on the heat pump products page, look through the FAQ section for common questions, and reach us for a survey through the contact page or on +90 551 795 3450. Our showroom is at Çamlık Mah. İkbal Cad. Uğurlu Sk. No:35/A, Ümraniye/İstanbul.