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Heat Pump Customer Self-Survey
Let the customer collect the evidence. Keep the technical decisions with your team.
- Last updated: September 2026
- Heat Loss Hub · For Installers
A customer self-survey can reduce survey time, improve design handover and help avoid unnecessary repeat visits.
The idea is simple. The homeowner collects the straightforward information they can see, measure and photograph. The installer and designer keep control of the technical decisions.
A customer self-survey can help collect:
- Room measurements
- Radiator measurements
- Photographs
- Video walkthroughs
- Cylinder cupboard dimensions
- Outdoor-unit location information
- Plans and documents
- Hot-water usage information
KEY TAKEAWAY
The customer provides the evidence. The installer and designer make the technical decisions.
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See how customer self-survey fits into the wider structured remote-survey process.
What Is a Customer Self-Survey?
A customer self-survey is not DIY heat-pump design. The homeowner is not being asked to calculate heat loss, size the heat pump, select radiators, assess pipework, design hydraulics, check electrical capacity or select the cylinder.
Instead, they are guided through simple tasks that help the design team understand the property. For example: measure this room, measure this radiator, take a photo of this cupboard, upload this floor plan, record a video of this route, tell us how many people live in the property.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Ask the customer what they can see and measure. Let the designer decide what it means. This can reduce the amount of basic information an installer needs to collect personally.
What Can the Customer Safely Collect?
Many survey tasks do not require technical judgement.
Rooms
The customer can usually provide room name, length, width, ceiling height, room use, open-plan information and photos where useful.
Radiators
They can record height, length, front photograph, side photograph, wider room photograph and available wall space.
Hot Water
They can provide number of occupants, number of baths, number of showers, large baths, high-flow showers where known, existing cylinder photos and cylinder cupboard dimensions.
Outdoor-Unit Location
They can provide wide photographs, proposed position, nearby windows, nearby doors, boundary location, basic distances and video showing the route back to the property.
Documents
They can upload EPC, floor plans, architectural drawings, extension plans, new-build drawings and existing heating documents.
This gives the designer useful evidence without asking the homeowner to interpret it technically.
Customer Task vs Technical Task
The boundary should be clear.
| Customer Can Do | Installer or Designer Should Decide |
|---|---|
| Measure a room | Calculate heat loss |
| Measure a radiator | Decide whether it is large enough |
| Photograph pipework | Decide whether the pipework is suitable |
| Photograph the consumer unit | Assess electrical suitability |
| Measure the cylinder cupboard | Select the cylinder |
| Show the proposed heat-pump location | Assess whether the location is suitable |
| Upload EPC and plans | Decide which information can be relied upon |
KEY TAKEAWAY
Information collection can be delegated. Technical responsibility should not be. This is one of the most important principles behind a good customer self-survey.
“I Don’t Know” Should Be a Valid Answer
One of the biggest risks with customer self-surveys is forcing people to answer questions they do not understand. That encourages guessing.
A good survey should make it easy to say: I don’t know, I’m not sure, I cannot see it, I cannot access it, or I need help with this.
For example, instead of forcing the customer to select a wall type, allow “Not sure”. Instead of forcing them to identify a pipe size, allow “Cannot confirm”.
KEY TAKEAWAY
A self-survey should make it easier to give an honest unknown than a confident wrong answer. Those unknowns can then be reviewed by the installer or designer.
How Should the Customer Measure a Room?
Room measurement should be kept simple. The customer may be asked to record length, width, ceiling height, room name, open-plan connection and sloping ceilings where present.
Instructions should be clear. For example: measure wall to wall, use metres, record to two decimal places where practical, measure the main usable room area, and add notes if the room has an unusual shape.
The customer should not need to calculate floor area, external wall area, heat loss or U-values.
KEY TAKEAWAY
The customer should measure the room, not calculate the heat loss. Where the dimensions appear unusual, the designer can ask for confirmation.
How Should the Customer Measure Radiators?
Radiator information is usually straightforward to collect when the instructions are clear. The customer can provide height, length, front photograph, side photograph and wider room view.
If the radiator type is obvious, they may also be able to identify single panel, double panel or convector fins. But the process should not depend on the homeowner understanding radiator terminology. If they are unsure, photographs are often more useful than asking them to guess.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Measure it, photograph it and let the designer identify it.
Cylinder and Hot-Water Information
The homeowner is often the best person to describe how the household actually uses hot water. Useful information can include number of occupants, number of bathrooms, number of baths, number of showers, large baths, high-flow showers and unusual hot-water usage.
If there is an existing cylinder, the customer may also provide a full cupboard photograph, cylinder label photograph, pipework photographs, approximate cylinder size, cupboard height, cupboard width and cupboard depth.
The customer does not need to decide whether the existing cylinder is suitable.
KEY TAKEAWAY
The customer describes the demand and space. The designer selects the cylinder.
Showing the Proposed Outdoor-Unit Location
The homeowner can help the design team understand possible outdoor-unit locations. Useful information may include a wide photo of the wall or area, proposed position, nearest windows, nearest doors, property boundary, ground condition, available width, access and a video route back into the property.
The customer is not being asked to decide whether the location is technically acceptable. They are showing the design team what is there.
KEY TAKEAWAY
The customer shows the location. The installer and designer assess it.
Pipework: Photograph It Rather Than Diagnose It
Existing pipework is important, but it can be difficult for homeowners to identify technically. A customer can still provide useful evidence. They may be asked to photograph visible pipework, take close-up photos, include a ruler or tape measure where practical, show the boiler or plant area, show flow and return routes where visible, and record a short route video.
What they should not be asked is: “Is this pipe large enough for the heat pump?” That is a design question.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Ask the customer to show the pipework, not judge the pipework.
Electrical Information
Homeowners can provide useful electrical photographs without being asked to make electrical assessments. Suitable tasks include photographing the consumer unit, photographing the electricity meter, showing the location of each, showing possible cable routes and photographing labels where visible.
They should not be expected to determine spare electrical capacity, breaker size, cable size, maximum demand or supply suitability. Those are technical electrical decisions.
Photos Should Be Requested for a Reason
A customer should not simply be told “upload some photos.” They should be shown exactly what is needed. For example:
Radiator
Full front view, side view, wider view showing the radiator in the room.
Cylinder
Whole cupboard, cylinder label, pipework, available clearance.
Outdoor-Unit Location
Full wall or area, proposed position, nearest opening, boundary, ground area.
Consumer Unit
Whole board, clear close-up of labels where possible.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Good survey photos are requested for a reason, not uploaded at random. Specific prompts improve the quality of the information returned.
Video Can Be Easier Than Explaining
Some parts of a property are difficult to describe with individual photographs. Video can work better.
Useful prompts might include:
Start at the proposed heat-pump position and walk slowly towards the cylinder cupboard.
Show the whole boiler and plant area from left to right.
Show the pipe route through the garage and explain where it enters the house.
Video can be particularly helpful for plant rooms, outdoor-to-indoor routes, loft access, cylinder cupboards, difficult access, pipe routes and property layout.
KEY TAKEAWAY
If it is difficult to explain in words, ask the customer to show it on video.
The Survey Should Use Homeowner Language
Technical wording creates bad data.
Instead of “What is the U-value of the external wall?”, ask “Do you know what the wall is made from?” and offer solid brick, cavity wall, timber frame, other, or not sure.
Instead of “Confirm the primary pipe diameter”, ask “Take a clear photo of this pipe next to a tape measure if possible.”
Instead of “Identify the existing emitter specification”, ask “Measure the radiator and take a photo from the front and side.”
KEY TAKEAWAY
The survey should speak homeowner language, not design-office language. The simpler the question, the more reliable the answer is likely to be.
Ask Only Relevant Questions
A good self-survey should change depending on the property. The customer should not have to work through questions that do not apply.
If There Is an Existing Cylinder
Ask for cylinder photos, label, cupboard dimensions and pipework.
If the Property Has a Combi Boiler
There may be no cylinder to survey. Instead ask where could a cylinder go, what space is available, how many occupants, and how many baths and showers.
If There Is Underfloor Heating
Ask for a manifold photo, number of zones if known, floor finish and rooms served. If there is no underfloor heating, do not ask another ten questions about it.
KEY TAKEAWAY
A good self-survey should get shorter when a question does not apply. This makes the process easier to complete and reduces irrelevant answers.
How Do You Stop Bad Data Entering the Design?
Customer self-survey should make data collection easier without lowering survey quality. Useful safeguards can include mandatory fields, “not sure” options, example photographs, measurement instructions, sensible minimum and maximum values, warnings for unusual measurements, photo requirements, duplicate checks and completeness review.
For example, if a customer enters a ceiling height of 22 metres, the system should not simply accept it. If one room is shown as 3 metres wide on a plan and 8 metres wide in the survey, that should be flagged.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Customer self-survey should reduce installer workload without lowering survey quality.
Completeness Check
Before the customer finishes, the survey should check whether the required sections are complete. For example:
| Survey Section | Status |
|---|---|
| Property details | Complete |
| Rooms | Complete |
| Radiators | Complete |
| Hot water | Complete |
| Outdoor unit | Complete |
| Photos | Missing items |
| Documents | Complete |
The survey may then show: Status: Ready for review
That is different from “Ready for design.” The information still needs to be checked.
What Happens After the Customer Submits?
A sensible workflow is:
Customer submits survey → Information reviewed → Missing or unclear items identified → Customer adds only the missing information → Technical questions sent to installer where required → Survey approved → Ready for design
KEY TAKEAWAY
The customer should never have to repeat the whole survey because one item was missing. If one cylinder photo is unclear, ask for another cylinder photo. Do not make the homeowner start again.
What Should the Installer Still Verify?
Customer self-survey does not remove the installer from the process. Depending on the property, the installer may still need to verify building construction, existing pipe sizes, electrical suitability, outdoor-unit constraints, technical plant details, hidden services, access, anything safety-critical and anything affecting compliance.
KEY TAKEAWAY
The customer does the measuring. The installer verifies the technical risks. This is where a hybrid survey can work particularly well.
Self-Survey Before the Installer Visits
Customer self-survey can be useful even where a full site visit is planned. Before the appointment, the homeowner might provide EPC, floor plans, basic property details, room measurements, hot-water information, photos and existing heating details.
That gives the installer more information before arriving. The visit can then focus on verification, technical decisions, difficult areas and installation planning rather than spending the entire appointment collecting basic information.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Self-survey can make the first visit better, not just replace one.
Self-Survey After the Installer Visits
This is another particularly useful application. An installer may complete a survey and later realise that one item was missed — for example one radiator dimension, cylinder label, outdoor-unit boundary distance, consumer-unit photo, pipe-route video or loft photograph.
Without remote data collection, that small omission can create another appointment, more travel, customer inconvenience and design delay. Instead, the customer may be able to provide the missing item remotely.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Self-survey is one of the easiest ways to avoid a second visit for one forgotten detail.
When Does Customer Self-Survey Work Best?
Self-survey can work particularly well where the property is straightforward, the customer is comfortable using a smartphone, good internet access is available, plans or drawings already exist, the installer is already involved, only supplementary information is required, or the design team uses a structured survey process.
It can also work well where the customer wants to collect information in their own time rather than arrange another appointment.
When Might Customer Self-Survey Not Be Suitable?
Not every customer or property is well suited to self-survey. It may be less appropriate where the customer is uncomfortable with technology, measuring is physically difficult, loft or plant access is unsafe, the property is unusually complex, construction is uncertain, pipework is difficult to identify, the customer cannot obtain reliable measurements, or technical verification is needed throughout.
That is not a failure of the process. It simply means another survey route is more appropriate.
KEY TAKEAWAY
A customer should never be encouraged to access somewhere unsafe just to complete the survey.
Self-Survey Should Be Optional
Not every customer wants to complete a self-survey, and that is fine. The process should still work through a fully installer-led survey, a hybrid approach, or a fully self-completed survey where suitable.
KEY TAKEAWAY
The aim is to give installers a flexible option, not to force every customer into a digital process they are uncomfortable with.
Record Where the Information Came From
Traceability matters. A good survey record should show where each piece of information came from. For example: room measurement supplied by customer, radiator photo supplied by customer, pipework assessment confirmed by installer, cylinder decision made by designer, and outdoor-unit suitability confirmed by installer.
KEY TAKEAWAY
If a question arises later, everyone should be able to see who provided or confirmed each piece of information.
How Does Customer Self-Survey Fit Into the Wider Remote Workflow?
Customer self-survey is one part of a wider structured process. A typical sequence might be:
Customer completes self-survey → Information reviewed → Installer verifies technical items → Missing information resolved → Survey marked ready for design → Design begins
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, they can often complete large parts of it. Straightforward information such as measurements, photographs, videos and documents can usually be collected by the homeowner. Technical decisions should remain with the installer and designer.
It can be, provided the questions are clear, the required evidence is specified and the information is checked before being used in design.
Technical judgements such as whether a radiator is large enough, whether pipework is suitable, whether the electrical supply is adequate, or which cylinder should be selected.
Yes. A good self-survey should ask relevant questions based on previous answers, rather than asking every customer identical questions regardless of relevance.
The survey should allow “not sure” or similar honest responses rather than forcing a guess.
Photographs can provide useful evidence, but they do not replace technical judgement. Some items may still need installer verification.
Yes. Video is often more effective than several individual photographs for explaining routes, layouts and access.
Usually yes. Depending on the project, that may include construction type, pipework, electrical suitability, outdoor-unit constraints and other technical or safety-related items.
No. Some customers may be uncomfortable with the process, unable to access certain areas safely, or dealing with a property too complex for confident self-assessment. In those cases, other survey methods can be used.
Yes. It is particularly useful for filling in missed information without needing a second full visit.
Yes. It can help the installer arrive better prepared, having already reviewed basic property information.
No. The customer collects information. The installer and designer retain responsibility for technical decisions.
Through validation checks, required photo evidence, sensible limits on entered values and a completeness/quality review before the survey is used for design.
Yes. The completed and reviewed survey can be used as the handover into a remote design process.
Want to Reduce Survey Time Without Losing Technical Control?
Let the customer collect the measurements and evidence they are capable of providing. Keep the technical decisions with your team.
A structured self-survey can reduce the amount of straightforward information your team needs to collect personally, while keeping the engineering judgement exactly where it belongs.
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See how customer self-survey fits into the wider structured remote-survey process.
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