Is a Heat Pump a Worthwhile Investment?

More and more homes these days have heat pumps for heating and cooling, but are they worth the money, and how do they work? Heat pumps only require a small amount of energy to move heat around. They work by extracting heat from the air or ground to heat your home. They are a good choice compared to a standard heating and air-conditioning, as they require just one unit to do all the work. Heat pumps are also a greener way to warm your home as they transfer the heat from one place to another rather than use fuel to create warmth. This makes them more efficient than a normal furnace. However they're not right for everyone, as they are best used in temperate climates. If you live somewhere that doesn't experience extremes of temperatures, then heat pumps are the perfect choice for heating your home, and are likely to save you money.

How Exactly Do Heat Pumps Work?

Regardless of the type of heat pump you choose, they all work in basically the same way, by transferring heat. Heat pumps work by transferring heat from one area to another and most work by extracting heat from the air outside your home. These air source heat pumps are pretty basic, and simply work with a compressor, refrigerator coils and a reversing valve, and mean you'll have a unit installed outside your home. Heat pumps that work by sourcing the heat from the ground are a little different. They work by absorbing heat from the earth, or from water before transferring it into your home. Most work by transferring heat from the ground into pipes that had been buried, and which are filled with either water or some kind of refrigerant. The liquid circulates through the pipes to transfer the heat. Although most heat pumps work with an air duct system, there are some that can be connected to water heaters or space heaters.

Heat Pumps Can Deliver Energy Savings

If you do live in a temperate climate, then you'll find a heat pump is an energy efficient alternative to having an air conditioner and the furnace. It's been estimated that if you currently heat your home using electricity, then a heat pump could reduce the amount of electricity used by up to 40%. A truly efficient heat pump will provide up to four times the amount of energy it consumes. Modern heat pumps are also equipped with a number of innovative features.

Things to look out for When Choosing New Heat Pumps

The newest heat pumps can have a number of features that can make them even more efficient and user-friendly. These include such things as having a two speed compressor which enables the heat pump to operate to the correct capacity needed at that particular moment, saving energy and wear and tear on the compressor. This feature also works well with electronic zoning systems that are often found in larger homes to enable different rooms to be kept at different temperatures. Some of the high-efficiency models are equipped with a mechanism to recover waste heat from the heat pumps cooling mode so that they can be used to heat water. This is something that can be far more efficient than an ordinary electrically powered water heater.