Hydronic and gas heating in Melbourne: rules, rebates and installers

Quick answer: Melbourne is where Australian hydronic heating is most established, and most of the country’s specialists are based here. Existing homes can keep and replace gas space heating, but new homes must be all-electric from 1 January 2027 and gas hot water must be replaced with electric at end of life from 1 March 2027. Gasfitters are licensed through the Building and Plumbing Commission, and Victorian Energy Upgrades takes up to $1,610 off an efficient reverse-cycle system.

If any Australian city has a boiler culture, it is Melbourne. Cold winters, older brick houses and a long-established gas network mean hydronic radiator systems are far more common here than in Sydney or Brisbane, alongside the ducted gas heating that many Melbourne homes rely on. Victoria is also changing the rules on gas faster than any other state, which makes the choice between replacing a gas boiler and switching to a heat pump a live one. This guide covers the Victorian gas rules, licensing, safety checks, rebates and local hydronic installers.

Victoria’s gas rules

Rule	What it means
From 1 January 2024 (planning amendment VC250)	New dwellings, apartments and residential subdivisions needing a planning permit lodged on or after this date cannot connect to mains gas
From 1 January 2027	All new homes and most new commercial buildings must be built all-electric
From 1 March 2027	Gas hot water systems in existing homes must be replaced with electric alternatives once they reach end of life, with exemptions where this is difficult
Existing gas heating and cooking	No change for existing residential buildings
Bottled or reticulated LPG	Not affected by the mains gas prohibition

For a Melbourne home with an existing gas hydronic boiler or ducted gas heater, that means you can still replace it with a new gas unit. What you cannot do from March 2027 is replace a worn-out gas hot water system with another gas one, which matters if your hydronic boiler also heats your hot water. Ask any installer how their proposal handles hot water under the 2027 rule; our guide to heat pump or replacement gas boiler covers the trade-offs.

Licensing and safety

Plumbing and gasfitting licences and registrations in Victoria are now overseen by the Building and Plumbing Commission (BPC), which replaced the Victorian Building Authority on 1 July 2025; existing licences carried over. Check your gasfitter on the BPC’s public register and ask which class of licence covers the work. Energy Safe Victoria recommends that gas heaters are serviced and tested at least once every two years by a licensed or registered gasfitter, because a poorly maintained heater can leak carbon monoxide. It has also banned the sale of new open-flued gas heaters that do not meet the updated standard, under which new heaters must shut down within 15 minutes if they spill carbon monoxide in negative-pressure conditions.

Rebates and discounts for Melbourne homes

Programme	What it offers (September 2026)
Victorian Energy Upgrades: heating and cooling	Up to $1,610 off upfront costs for an efficient reverse-cycle air conditioner
Victorian Energy Upgrades: hot water	Up to $630 off a heat pump hot water system
Solar Victoria hot water rebate	Up to $1,000 on an eligible heat pump or solar hot water system; up to $1,400 for locally made products
Federal STCs	Upfront discount on eligible heat pump and solar hot water systems

VEU discounts are applied upfront by accredited providers, usually when an older appliance is replaced with an approved model; renters need landlord approval for heating and cooling upgrades. The Solar Victoria rebate is for owner-occupiers with combined household taxable income under $150,000, property value under $3 million, and an existing system being replaced. We found no rebate for a new gas boiler.

Typical prices

We have not found a price survey for this city alone, so these are national figures checked in September 2026. Tempco Energy’s 2026 guides put a complete hydronic system at $12,000–$40,000, a gas boiler for a hydronic system at $3,000–$7,000 supplied and installed, and a ducted gas heating system at $3,000–$10,000. Canstar Blue, citing a Perth installer, puts ducted reverse-cycle air conditioning at roughly $9,000–$20,000 installed, and Tempco puts a heat pump hot water system at $2,500–$4,500 before rebates. Tempco’s figure of $12,000–$22,000 for a gas boiler and panel radiator system in a three-bedroom home is Melbourne-specific. See our Australia heating costs guide for the full table.

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How to choose an installer

Check the licence. Look the gasfitter up on the Building and Plumbing Commission register.
Get the paperwork. Ask what compliance certificate or notice the gasfitter will give you or lodge when the job is done.
Hydronic or ducted? Ask how many systems of your type the firm has installed, and whether it will size the boiler or heat pump from a heat-loss calculation rather than the old unit’s rating.
Rebates: most discounts are applied only by accredited or participating installers, so confirm eligibility before you sign.
Hot water: if your boiler also heats water, ask how the installer’s proposal handles the March 2027 hot water rule.

Our guide to comparing installation quotes like for like has a fuller checklist, and water-based and warm-air heating explains how the two main system types differ.

Hydronic heating installers in Melbourne

These businesses appear in public business listings for Melbourne, and each has its own website describing hydronic heating work. We have not checked their work, prices, registrations or insurance, and they have not paid to appear.

Melbourne Hydronic Heating

Area: Cheltenham

Services listed on its website: hydronic radiators and underfloor heating, heat pumps, ducted systems

Website: melbournehydronic.com.au