Quote:
Originally Posted by Keith Seymore
I hear good things about a "heat pump".
My sister in law is in the heating/cooling biz and she had one installed in her own home.
I just moved and my new place has a heat pump for moderate weather and an oil fired traditional furnace for when it gets cold.
I can't comment on how that works since we've only been there for about 36 hours.
So far so good, though 
K |
A heat pump has efficiency on par with old resistance heaters. Only would recommend use in areas with low electricity rates and somewhat mild climates. They have a low heat rise that uses the same amount of power (more with resistance heat added to increase heat rise) as your A/C unit. The SEER on the A/C side has nothing to do with the heat HSPF rating, do not confuse the two. Heat pumps are no more efficient on the heat side than they were 30 years ago. The Technolgy has not changed. My reference, heat and A/C was my career for over 40 years. Even with the elevated gas prices here in California a gas fired heater will cost less to heat a home here.