What is first-time central heating?
First-time central heating (FTCH) means installing a central heating system in a home that has never had one. The law behind ECO4 describes it as a wet central heating system installed in a home that at no point before was heated by a wet central heating system.
A wet system is one that heats water and pumps it round radiators, or underfloor heating. The heat usually comes from a gas boiler, though a heat pump can do the same job.
Which homes count
The test is simple: has the home ever had a boiler, or another heat source, feeding radiators? If not, it may qualify. Homes that often fit include those heated by:
- gas fires or gas wall heaters in one or two rooms;
- electric room heaters, such as panel heaters, convector heaters or portable heaters;
- storage heaters, unless the home has had modern, responsive storage heaters in working order at any time since 1 April 2022;
- solid fuel fires, with no boiler.
A home with a back boiler behind a gas fire already has wet central heating, so it is not FTCH. It may still qualify as a boiler upgrade instead. See back boiler replacement grants.
FTCH is not capped
Ofgem caps how many broken boiler replacements energy suppliers can fund, but first-time central heating sits outside that cap. A home moving from room heaters to central heating also tends to improve its energy rating a lot, which is what ECO4 is measured on.
Who qualifies for FTCH
Set by the scheme · Ofgem and GOV.UK
The ECO4 rules for first-time central heating
- Someone in the household receives a qualifying means-tested benefit, such as Universal Credit, Pension Credit or Housing Benefit, or the council declares the household eligible through ECO4 Flex.
- You own the home, or rent it with the landlord’s permission.
- The home has an energy rating (EPC) of D to G. Rented homes, private or social, must be rated E to G.
- The home has never had a wet central heating system.
- The exterior cavity walls and loft are insulated first, where that is suitable.
Our service · not a scheme rule
How Warm Home Support handles your enquiry
These describe how we look at an enquiry. They are not ECO4 requirements, and they do not change what the scheme itself allows.
- We check whether your home and household fit before you book a survey.
- If they do not, we tell you which other scheme might, such as a heat pump grant.
The insulation rule comes from the ECO4 delivery guidance: homes receiving first-time central heating must first have their exterior cavity walls and loft insulated. The project also has to lift the home’s energy rating, to at least band C for homes starting at D or E, and at least band D for homes starting at F or G.
Private tenants
ECO4 does not normally fund boiler replacements in privately rented homes, but first-time central heating is one of the exceptions. Ofgem’s guidance allows electric storage heaters to be replaced when they are replaced by FTCH. You need your landlord’s permission, and the home must be rated E to G.
What FTCH can include
| Part | What it is |
|---|---|
| Heat source | Usually a gas boiler where the home has a gas supply. A heat pump where gas is not an option. |
| Radiators | Sized for each room the system heats, with thermostatic valves. |
| Pipework | New pipes from the heat source to each radiator, run under floors or along walls. |
| Hot water | A combi boiler heats water on demand. A system boiler or heat pump uses a hot water cylinder. |
| Controls | A programmer or timer and a room thermostat. |
| Insulation | Loft and cavity wall insulation, installed first where the home needs it. |
If there is no gas supply
A gas boiler needs a gas connection. If your street has gas but your home is not connected, ask the installer whether a connection is possible and who would pay for it. If not, a heat pump with radiators also counts as a wet central heating system, and can be the first-time system instead.
What happens, step by step
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Step 1: Check your route
Confirm the qualifying benefit, or ask your council about ECO4 Flex. Find your home’s EPC rating.
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Step 2: Enquiry and evidence
Contact an installer delivering ECO4, or an energy supplier. Send proof of the benefit and of ownership, or your landlord’s permission.
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Step 3: Home assessment
An assessor records the home, its insulation and how it is heated now, and confirms it has never had central heating.
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Step 4: Design
Radiator sizes and positions, the boiler or heat pump location, pipe routes and hot water are planned. Ask to see this before you agree.
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Step 5: Insulation, then heating
Loft and cavity wall insulation go in first where needed. The heating is installed and commissioned afterwards, and you are shown the controls.
Installing central heating for the first time means lifting some floorboards, drilling through walls and fitting radiators, so there is more disruption than with a boiler swap. Ask the installer how long the work will take, which rooms they will work in each day, and what making good is included.
Act before ECO4 closes
ECO4 ends on 31 December 2026, and the work has to be finished by then. First-time central heating involves insulation, design and a bigger installation, so it needs more time than most measures.
No central heating? Check what applies
Tell us how your home is heated now and whether you own it. We will take you to our eligibility check with those answers filled in. It is free, and nothing is sent until you choose to send it.
If you do not qualify for ECO4
- Homeowners in England and Wales: the Boiler Upgrade Scheme offers a grant towards a heat pump, with no income test. A home heated by storage heaters can use it. See replacing storage heaters with a heat pump.
- Lower-income households in England: the Warm Homes: Local Grant may fund insulation and a heat pump through your council.
- Scotland and Wales: see our guides to grants in Scotland and grants in Wales.
- Not on benefits: see boiler grants if you are not on benefits.
