Heat pump & solar installers in Lymington & the New Forest

Much of the New Forest sits within the New Forest National Park, where the New Forest National Park Authority deals with planning. Towns such as Lymington, New Milton, Ringwood and Totton are mostly outside the park boundary and come under New Forest District Council.

For most houses, an air source heat pump and roof-mounted solar panels are permitted development inside the National Park, just as they are elsewhere, as long as the size, siting and noise conditions are met. Free-standing solar panels in a garden have tighter limits on protected land, especially near boundaries. In a conservation area, a heat pump can't go on a wall or roof that faces a road, and solar panels can't go on a wall, balcony or roof enclosure that faces a road. Parts of Lymington town centre are in a conservation area.

Listed buildings, flats and homes covered by an Article 4 direction need extra checks. We confirm the rules for your property with the right authority before any work starts.

Many rural homes in the Forest aren't connected to mains gas and are heated by oil, LPG or electric heaters. Homes on LPG or electric heating usually see the biggest running-cost savings from a heat pump.

Until March 2027, homes heated by oil or LPG without a mains gas connection can get an extra £1,500 on top of the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant.

Larger rural plots can suit a ground source heat pump, which collects heat through pipework laid in trenches across a garden or paddock. It costs more to install than an air source heat pump but tends to be more efficient, and there's nothing visible outside once the ground is reinstated.