BAFA funding for heat pump (air-to-water heat pump) when building with a developer

If you want it comfortable in summer, then build solidly and pay attention to good shading including Venetian blinds.

Yes, it is solid construction and all windows have electric shutters. Venetian blinds only on certain windows if at all. It depends on the extra cost during the customization and how we assess the burglary protection issue. I have now understood that the cooling function is rather "nice-to-have." Therefore, the fundamental question arises for me whether to prefer an air-to-water heat pump or a gas boiler + solar thermal. Assuming that both are equally expensive with subsidies. The biggest disadvantage of the air-to-water heat pump for me is the huge box in front of the door. With gas, I'm just dependent on another energy source. Unfortunately, this completely misses the original thread topic, but I am still waiting for the offer.

normal roller shutters are, by the way, not a burglary protection

The biggest disadvantage of the air-to-water heat pump for me is the huge box in front of the door.

You can also install the "huge" box discreetly or use a device without an outdoor unit. You just have to free yourself from prejudices and you will find many possible solutions.

I had read in other posts something about estimated 3-5 degrees. I don’t expect results like with an air conditioner, but up to 5 degrees would be worth gold for me in summer.

Cooling the rooms in summer is very important to us. We did not rely on the cooling function of the heat pump. I only researched online as well, but everything I found also showed these value ranges of "2-3°C maximum". And it was too risky, especially since the cooling package for the heat pump would also have cost over €2000 more, I believe (I would have to check). We then scrapped that and are building with an air conditioner instead. That cost about €5.5k extra for us, but it also depends on what you want. If you build without air conditioning, you could have the preparation installed. We saw during our shell construction phase that quite a few large pipes for the air conditioning run through the walls, so retrofitting something like that would be difficult and certainly expensive. I have photos of our shell phase in my blog if you are interested.

Many thanks also for your explanations. Were you able to contractually agree beforehand that the heat pump also meets the funding conditions? Did you have "only" the heat pump in the funding or also the central ventilation system?

We have a combined unit, so we have the whole thing funded. In the contract, we had it written down that we would get a heat pump that meets the conditions for the BAFA funding.

Do you know where you can look that up? My concern is that my contractual relationship with the developer exists and that I am already "commissioning" them with the purchase contract.

I had the same concern, but my general contractor confirmed to me that the date that THEY commission the specialist counts. You can also read it again in writing from the BAFA in this "confirmation from the developer" form. Unfortunately, I am not allowed to link it, but you can find it via Google.

Normal roller shutters are by the way not burglary protection

Tell that to my wife

The "huge" box can also be installed discreetly or you can take a unit without an outdoor component. You just have to free yourself from prejudices and you will find many possible solutions.

Unfortunately, the only options are
- on the side of the house and thus "right in the carport"
- on the terrace side
- in front of the house (street side) between the garage and the front door
Currently, the only option available to me is the Nibe F2120. The property developer has his preferences.
If the advantages outweigh the drawbacks, we would come to terms with placing the box in front of the house and then just put a bush or something in front of it. Many of our friends have built with air-to-water heat pumps, so gas feels like "old-fashioned" to me – even though the area was specifically developed for gas.