A new heat pump can feel complicated because the installer may have shown you several screens, multiple temperatures, and more than one control in a short handover.

The most useful first step is not to optimise anything. It is to preserve the starting point.

1. Identify the outdoor unit

Find the manufacturer, model, and serial number on the accessible external label. Do not remove panels.

Take a clear photograph and save the details somewhere you can find later. The exact model matters because menus and owner instructions can differ even within the same brand.

2. Map the indoor equipment

Record what you can see inside the property.

Depending on the installation, that may include:

  • an indoor hydraulic unit;
  • an integrated cylinder unit;
  • a separate hot-water cylinder;
  • pumps and valves;
  • a buffer or volumiser;
  • room thermostats;
  • one or more zone controls.

You do not need to name every component correctly on day one. The point is to create a map of what exists without opening covers.

3. Work out which control is which

The room thermostat is not necessarily the main heat-pump controller.

You may have:

  • a controller on the indoor unit;
  • a wall-mounted heat-pump controller;
  • a room thermostat;
  • separate zone thermostats;
  • a phone app.

A useful question is: which control talks directly to the heat pump, and which controls simply request heat?

If you do not yet know, record what each control is called and where it is.

4. Find the paperwork

Keep the available documents together in one physical or digital folder.

Look for:

  • user manuals;
  • controller instructions;
  • commissioning information;
  • installer handover documents;
  • warranty information;
  • design information supplied at installation;
  • hot-water cylinder instructions;
  • smart-control instructions;
  • installer and service contact details.

If the installation is MCS-certified, keep the MCS certificate with the rest of the heat-pump records.

5. Record the visible starting settings

Read the controller without trying to improve it.

Useful things to record, where displayed, include:

  • desired room temperature;
  • actual room temperature;
  • space-heating mode;
  • hot-water mode and target;
  • schedule status;
  • holiday mode;
  • weather-compensation indication;
  • flow or leaving-water temperature;
  • outdoor temperature;
  • warning or fault messages.

Do not enter protected or installer menus simply to fill a gap. Unknown is a perfectly useful answer.

Photographs of the main screens are often the easiest way to preserve the initial state.

6. Identify how each room is heated

Walk around the home and note whether rooms use:

  • radiators;
  • underfloor heating;
  • fan convectors;
  • another emitter type.

Also record whether rooms belong to different heating zones or use separate thermostats.

This distinction becomes important later. One cold bedroom is a different problem from a whole house that never reaches its target.

7. Find your electricity information

Note what energy information you actually have.

That might be:

  • whole-house smart-meter data;
  • a supplier app;
  • a dedicated heat-pump electricity meter;
  • a heat meter;
  • energy information on the heat-pump controller.

Do not assume every number labelled “energy” means the same thing. Whole-house electricity, heat-pump electricity, and heat delivered are different measurements.

Your handover reset

Before making changes, try to answer these questions:

  • What outdoor unit do I have?
  • What indoor unit and hot-water equipment do I have?
  • Where is the main heat-pump controller?
  • Which room controls do I normally use?
  • Do I have one heating zone or several?
  • Are the emitters radiators, underfloor heating, or both?
  • Do I have the correct user documentation?
  • Do I have installer or service contact details?
  • Have I recorded the visible starting settings?
  • Have I photographed the starting configuration?

You do not need the “perfect” flow temperature or heating curve yet.

A reliable baseline is more useful than a collection of settings copied from somebody else’s system.

Next, read the guide to weather compensation or the guide to knowing when to call the installer.

Owner boundary: Do not remove equipment covers, carry out electrical work, disturb refrigerant components, bypass safety devices, or change protected commissioning settings. Use the exact manufacturer documentation for your system.