Hot water solutions that work with the ZEB

As the ZEB is a heat-only boiler, you will need to install a separate solution to provide hot water to your house. All of the solutions below are examples of what our current customers use and can help you to decide what would work best for your home.

ZEB and Hot Water Cylinder

A hot water cylinder is a traditional cylinder that stores and heats water for use on demand. As the water is heated on a schedule, some planning is required to ensure you aren’t without hot water, but newer models come with smart features and better insulation, so offer better control. Depending on the property, hot water cylinders can either be connected to the mains water supply (unvented) or require an additional cold water tank in the loft (vented) – your installer should be able to recommend the best solution for your home and hot water habits. Both unvented and vented hot water cylinders can be heated indirectly by a ZEB (indirect hot water cylinder) or directly using an electric immersion (indirect hot water cylinder).

Choose this if you’d like:

  • Lower upfront costs
  • Lower running costs, as you can use cheap off-peak electricity with a programmer
  • The ability to take advantage of cheap night electricity rates, if it has smart features
  • The ability to store energy from your solar panels (PV), if you have a diverter

ZEB and Smart Cylinder

A smart cylinder is a hot water cylinder that heats from the top down, so you only heat the water that is needed. The heated water then stays hot as it’s used from the cylinder. Smart features give better control of charging times, hot water volume as well as visibility, though they also mean upfront costs are more expensive than a traditional hot water cylinder. As with traditional hot water cylinders, smart cylinders are available as direct or indirect types.

Choose this if you’d like:

  • Lower running costs, as you only heat as much water as you need
  • The ability to take advantage of cheap night electricity rates
  • The ability to store energy from your solar panels (PV)

ZEB and PCM Heat Battery

A PCM store is a type of heat battery, ideal as a hot water solution. Internal materials (phase change material or PCM) store energy, which is then used to heat water on demand, rather than storing water like a cylinder would do. Although this is a newer technology, upfront costs don’t differ significantly from traditional solutions. You can also use both cheap night electricity rates and energy generated from solar PV to keep running costs lower. In terms of size, they are significantly smaller than traditional solutions and don’t require legionella cycles, so it saves energy compared to cylinders. There are a few different options of PCM similar to direct or indirect hot water cylinders, which mean they can be plumbed either separately or together with a ZEB.

Choose this if you’d like:

  • Lower running costs
  • The ability to take advantage of cheap night electricity rates
  • The ability to store energy from your solar panels (PV)
  • Lower space requirement
  • Water on demand

How the ZEB works

Want to know how the ZEB works? Watch our 3D animations to understand how the ZEB generates and stores heat, and then how it distributes this heat to your home. You can also find out more by visiting our ‘Meet the ZEB’ page.

 

ZEB Home Check

Complete our ZEB Home Check to see if the ZEB is a good fit for your home.

ZEB specifications

Looking for information on the size, performance and features of the ZEB? See key specs below or download the full spec sheet.

  • Dimensions (W x D x H): 598 x 660 x 980mm (excludes necessary clearance)
  • Weight: 375kg
  • Thermal storage capacity: 40 kWh
  • Heat output: 15kW

How much does the ZEB cost?

A ZEB costs £6,000 to purchase, which includes VAT and delivery. Currently, the ZEB isn’t zero-rated for VAT purposes (20% VAT applies) and doesn’t receive any subsidies (but we’re working on it). If you’d like to help speed this process up, please write to your MP using the instructions here, requesting that the ZEB benefits from funding options.

Check how much you could save in running costs by making the switch to a ZEB with our cost & carbon calculator.

Installation costs vary and depend on your home, heating system requirements and local installer rates – however as it should take no more than 1-2 days and you won’t need to change radiators the costs are lower than most alternatives. We can put you in touch with a tepeoPRO installer in your area to get a quote specific to your home.