Plumbers and electricians often ask the same thing in different words: do I need a solar accreditation to claim STCs on a heat pump? The short answer is that hot water follows a different path from solar PV. Here is how it breaks down.
The two licences that matter
A heat pump water heater is part plumbing, part electrical. Installing the tank, the pipework, the tempering valve and the pressure relief is plumbing work, and every Australian state and territory requires a plumbing licence for it. Wiring the unit to the switchboard and fitting the isolator is electrical work, which needs a licensed electrician. Many jobs therefore involve two trades, or one business holding both.
CEC and SAA accreditation
The Clean Energy Council (CEC) accredits designers and installers of solar PV and, under the Cheaper Home Batteries Program, batteries. SAA accreditation sits in the same world. Neither is the test for an air source heat pump or a solar water heater. For hot water, the Clean Energy Regulator (CER) looks at the registered model and whether the installation complied with state licensing and the relevant standards. If your state or the CER changes the requirement, that rule overrides anything here, so check the CER’s solar water heater and heat pump page before you start.
From the desk: an electrician who holds CEC accreditation does not need it for a hot water job, and a plumber without it is not disqualified. What gets claims knocked back is a missing compliance certificate or unlicensed electrical work.
What the claim will show
- The plumber’s licence number on the compliance certificate, where your state issues one. See plumbing certificates by state.
- Electrical documentation where wiring was installed or altered.
- The installer’s details on the invoice and assignment form.
Licences must be current on the install date. A lapsed licence is a problem that cannot be fixed after the fact.
Solar hot water
Roof-mounted solar water heaters add roof work and sometimes working at heights, plus collector and tank connections. The licence picture is the same: plumbing for the water side, electrical for any booster or pump wiring. See solar hot water STCs.
What this means for installers
Hold the right licences for your state, record them on every job and keep a copy with the claim. If you are a plumber who wants to offer heat pumps without an electrician on staff, line up a licensed partner and agree who takes which photos. For the full evidence list, use the hot water checklist. To start settling hot water certificates, see start trading, pricing and the hot water STC pillar.
Checking another installer’s credentials
If you subcontract, ask for the plumbing licence number, the electrician’s licence number and certificates of currency for insurance before the job, and record them in the job file. State regulators publish licence checkers, so confirming a licence takes a minute and avoids a claim built on an unlicensed install.