Heat pump hot water installation in Melbourne: prices and rebates
Helcro Electrical does heat pump hot water installation across Melbourne’s South East from our Cheltenham workshop, with our own team. On a straight swap, an iStore 270 L is about $3,900 installed and a Sanden Eco Plus 300 L about $7,500, including GST, before rebates. The Sanden comes to about $6,500 after the VEU discount and STCs. We include the VEU discount in your quote, and we are an authorised retailer on Solar Victoria’s list for hot water.
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Send the form and we will call you back within 2 business hours. We can often give a price range on the phone; a firm written quote follows a $50 site assessment.
In business since 2006 · Registered Electrical Contractor REC 35448 · VEU Accredited Provider A003039 · Solar Victoria authorised retailer for hot water · 5-year workmanship warranty on heat pump hot water
What heat pump hot water installation costs
| Heat pump | Price, including GST |
|---|---|
| iStore 270 L, installed, straight swap | about $3,900 before rebates |
| Emerald or Haier, installed | about the same as the iStore; we quote the model for your home |
| Sanden Eco Plus 300 L, installed, straight swap | about $7,500 before rebates; about $6,500 after the VEU discount and STCs |
| Sanden Wi-Fi controller (optional) | $250, on top of the installed price |
| Site assessment for a quote | $50 |
A straight swap means the new system goes where the old one stood. More complex installs are quoted, and you get a written quote before any work starts. The Solar Victoria rebate is not in these figures, because not every household qualifies for it.
What moves the price of a heat pump hot water installation:
- The system: brand, tank size and whether it is an all-in-one unit or a tank with a separate heat pump.
- The old system: taking out a gas water heater is gasfitting work, and the gas has to be made safe. On a gas swap our licensed plumber disconnects and caps the gas, and taking the old unit away is included.
- The location: a new spot means longer pipe and cable runs.
- The electrical side: the circuit and how the unit is wired (general supply or a controlled-load circuit).
- Your rebates: which ones you qualify for, below.
Heat pump hot water rebates in Victoria
Three different discounts can come off a heat pump, and they stack.
- Victorian Energy Upgrades (VEU): up to $560 off when a heat pump replaces gas hot water, and up to $630 when it replaces an inefficient electric system. We are a VEU Accredited Provider (A003039), so the discount is included in your quote and we handle the paperwork.
- Solar Victoria hot water rebate: up to $1,000, or up to $1,400 for an eligible locally made product, capped at 50% of the price after the other discounts. You need to own and live in an existing home, your combined taxable income must be less than $150,000, the property must be worth under $3 million, the system you are replacing must be at least 3 years old, and the address can't have had a Solar Homes hot water or battery rebate before.
- Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs): a federal discount that comes off the price at the outset.
The Victorian Government says the VEU discount and a Solar Homes hot water rebate together can reach up to $1,560 when a heat pump replaces gas, or $1,960 with an eligible locally made product. Under VEU a heat pump can't be installed free: after all discounts you pay at least $200, including GST.
STCs drop on 1 January 2027. A heat pump's certificates are worked out over a deeming period that falls by a year every 1 January: 5 years for a 2026 installation, 4 for 2027. At the same certificate price, that is about a fifth fewer STCs.
What is a heat pump hot water system, and how does it work?
A heat pump hot water system heats water by moving heat out of the outside air into an insulated storage tank, instead of making heat from electricity directly.
On average a heat pump delivers three to four units of heat for each unit of electricity, a coefficient of performance (COP) of 3 to 4, according to the ACT Government's heat pump guide. It is higher in summer and lower in cold weather.
Do you need solar? No. With solar, setting the heat pump to run during the day uses your own solar power; our solar soaking guide shows how.
Without solar, the Victorian Midday Power Saver gives households with a smart meter who sign up through their retailer up to 24 kWh a day of no-cost electricity between 11am and 2pm. A heat pump set to heat in that window only gets it on general supply, not on a controlled-load circuit. Prices outside the window and the daily supply charge can be higher on that offer.
Is a heat pump hot water system worth it?
For most homes replacing gas or an old electric tank, yes. Hot water is one of the biggest energy uses in the house: around 18% of energy use in Victorian households, according to the Victorian Government. It also says households replacing gas hot water with electric save around $400 a year, and that heat pumps use up to 75% less electricity than a standard electric storage system.
The trade-offs:
- A higher upfront price than a like-for-like gas or electric tank, before rebates.
- Some noise: the Victorian Government compares it to an air conditioner.
- Cold mornings: some units use an electric booster element in cold conditions, which raises running costs.
Our heat pump vs gas hot water guide works through the running costs against gas, and our heat pump vs electric hot water guide does the same for an electric tank.
iStore, Sanden, Emerald and Haier: which heat pump?
We install iStore, Sanden, Emerald and Haier heat pump hot water systems. There is no single best one: compare the tank size, noise level, cold-weather operating range, warranty and price for your home.
iStore heat pumps
iStore makes a 180 L model for smaller households and a 270 L model, which it pitches at households of 3 to 6 or more people. iStore lists the 270 L at a COP of 4.82 at 20°C air, heating water from 15°C to 60°C. The iStore 270 L is listed in our shop at $2,950 for the unit alone, before rebates.
Sanden heat pumps
The Sanden Eco Plus we install pairs a 300 L stainless steel tank with a separate outdoor CO2 heat pump made in Japan. Sanden rates it at a COP of 5.96 at its test point (32.45°C air), runs it from −10°C to +43°C, and lists it at 37 dB at 1 m. Sanden's warranty is 15 years on the tank, the last 5 of them pro-rata, and 10 years on the heat pump when this system is sold with Sanden's Wi-Fi controller, a $250 option.
Emerald and Haier heat pumps
We also install Emerald and Haier heat pump hot water systems, at about the same installed price as the iStore. Ask us for the model that suits your home.
What size heat pump do you need?
The Victorian Government sizes a hot water tank by bedrooms rather than people, because the number of people in a home changes over the life of the system:
| Bedrooms | Recommended tank size |
|---|---|
| 1 to 2 | 150 to 225 litres |
| 3 | 225 to 300 litres |
| 4 or more | more than 300 litres |
If you plan to heat only in the solar or free daytime window, allow a little more. We confirm the size at the site assessment.
Where it goes: noise, winter and indoor installs
In Melbourne's South East a heat pump hot water system usually goes outdoors, often where the old unit stood. It draws heat from the outside air, so it needs open air around it rather than an enclosed cupboard.
Is a heat pump noisy? It makes some noise, so where we can we place it away from bedroom windows, yours and your neighbours'. The Victorian Government suggests outside a kitchen or bathroom instead.
Can it go indoors? An all-in-one unit needs to go outdoors, according to the ACT Government's guide. A split system can have the tank inside and the heat pump unit outside.
Replacing gas hot water: the 1 March 2027 rule
From 1 March 2027, when a gas water heater in an existing Victorian home needs replacing, it can't be replaced with another mains gas water heater, unless an exemption applies. A working gas water heater never has to come out, before or after that date, and it can still be repaired. Our Victoria gas ban guide covers the exemptions. Replacing the gas cooktop and heater too? Our home electrification page covers the order to do it in.
Renting? From 1 March 2027, when a rental's hot water system breaks and can't be repaired, the rental provider has to replace it with a heat pump or an electric-boosted solar system. Rental providers can claim the VEU discount too.
Who installs it, the paperwork and the warranty
In Victoria a heat pump hot water installation needs a licensed plumber for the water connections and a licensed electrician for the electrical connection, and removing a gas water heater is gasfitting work. Plumbing work over $750 also needs a plumbing compliance certificate, which the licensed plumber must give you within five days, according to the Building and Plumbing Commission. The electrical work comes with a Certificate of Electrical Safety.
Warranty. Heat pump hot water installation carries our 5-year workmanship warranty, which starts on the date your certificate is issued and carries over to a new owner if you sell. Under VEU a heat pump must also be covered by a warranty of at least 5 years.
How long does it last? The Victorian Government plans on a 10 to 15 year life for a hot water system.
How a heat pump job works with Helcro Electrical
- Call 1300 201 358 or send the form. We will call you back within 2 business hours.
- A price on the phone where we can.
- A $50 site assessment. We look at the old system, the location, the switchboard and the circuit.
- A written quote with your VEU discount included and any other rebates shown. For the Solar Victoria rebate, we upload the quote, you upload your ID and proof of income to Solar Victoria, and the installation waits for your QR code, unless it is an emergency (below).
- The installation, by our own team. A typical heat pump installation takes one day, and you usually get Fedya or Rhys.
- Commissioning and paperwork. Testing, your certificates and your warranty in writing.
WHAT OUR CUSTOMERS SAY
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Heat pump hot water questions
My hot water has already failed. Can I still get the Solar Victoria rebate?
Yes, if you meet the criteria. Solar Victoria says that if your system breaks down or is unsafe, you do not have to wait for it to confirm you are eligible before the replacement goes in. You apply online as soon as possible afterwards, so tell us it is an emergency when you call.
Why is my bill higher than expected with a heat pump?
Check when it heats. Many heat pumps have a timer for off-peak or solar hours, and an electric booster element uses more power, so the settings matter.
Heat pump hot water installation across Melbourne's South East
We install heat pump hot water in Cheltenham, Mentone, Moorabbin, Highett, Parkdale, Beaumaris, Sandringham, Bentleigh, Bentleigh East, Brighton East, McKinnon, Carrum Downs, Aspendale, Hampton and Brighton, and in Black Rock, Seaford, Frankston and the other South East suburbs we cover.
Tell us what hot water system you have now, how many bedrooms, and whether you have solar, and we will call you back within 2 business hours.
Helcro Electrical, 45/148 Chesterville Road, Cheltenham VIC 3192. Phone 1300 201 358.
Prices and rules on this page checked 22 October 2026.