With a name like “HEAT PUMP” you might think it’s an appliance that only produces heat. Thankfully, a modern, high-tech heat pump offers much more! The following is a list of things you probably didn’t know about a heat pump:
- Heat pumps make heating and cooling. That’s right! In the summer a heat pump works like an air conditioner to cool the air. In the winter, a heat pump works like a furnace to heat the air. A heat pump is two appliances in one. Isn’t that cool?
- Not your grandpa’s heat pump. Today’s modern heat pumps are quite different than earlier generations: they are packed full of a lot of technology, including sensors to monitor indoor and outdoor environmental conditions, modulating fans and motors that speed up and slow down as needed, and computers that run sophisticated software to control all the various internal working parts. So, if you ever hear someone say, “heat pumps don’t work when it get cold out,” you can rightfully say, “Oh grandpa”.
- Superior comfort. All this great technology allows a modern heat pump to modulate (or adjust) to match the changing needs of the home. For example, if outdoor conditions change, let’s say it gets really hot outside, a modern heat pump can adjust how it works in order to keep producing lots of cool, dry air to cool for the home. Recently, my sister came into my home and remarked, “your heat pump makes me feel like I am being bathed in comfort!”
- Lower operating cost. A contractor I know says this about modern heat pumps, “More comfort, for less money!” This is especially true in the Northwest, with our relatively low electricity costs and relatively high natural gas, propane and fuel oil costs. Utility research is available to show what kind of savings you might expect. Research is also available to teach you how to eek the most savings possible out of your modern heat pump. With all this great information at your disposal, I wonder why you aren’t heating and cooling you home with a modern heat pump?
You might be wondering, “How will I know a modern heat pump when I see one?” Let me leave you with this one last tip: look for the word “INVERTER” labelled either on the heat pump itself or somewhere in the product description. “Inverter” is the term used by the heating and cooling trade to describe the system created by all the sensors, modulating motors, and computers I mentioned earlier. When you see INVERTER, you’re sure to be looking at a modern heat pump!
