We’re big on heat pumps for home comfort! There are few options for cooling and heating a house in Wesley Chapel that are better than installing a heat pump. There are numerous great benefits from heat pumps, and here are just a few:
- Heating and cooling in one unit
- Reduced cost for heating compared to other electric heaters
- Safe operation
But whether you already have a heat pump, or you are considering one for your next installation, we’d like you to know about some common misconceptions about them and clear them up. Our team is available to answer any questions you may have, and we can schedule fast service to repair a heat pump or schedule an installation. We always give honest answers and won’t try to upsell you on anything you don’t need.
A heat pump can be installed along with a heating system
Or, to put it another way, “I can just use the heat pump for air conditioning.”
Technically, you could have a heat pump installed along with a furnace or other heating system—but there’s no reason you should. Heat pumps cost more than a standard air conditioner, so if you only plan to use the heat pump for cooling, you’re wasting money. A heat pump is meant to replace your AC and your heater.
Heat pumps use two different methods for heating and cooling
When people hear that heat pumps can provide both heating and cooling, they often think the heat pump contains two separate devices to do those jobs. This isn’t the case: a heat pump uses the same process for heating and cooling, which is to circulate refrigerant to pump heat from one place to another: either remove heat from the house or move heat into the house. The heat pump only has to change the direction of the refrigerant to switch between the two.
Heat pumps can’t handle cold weather well
There is a bit of truth to this. Because a heat pump must draw heat from outside to work as a heater, it might struggle at pulling in enough heat on exceptionally cold days. However, we don’t experience days even remotely cold enough to give a heat pump any problem. That’s one reason heat pumps are so ideal for homeowners in Florida.
The heat pump’s outdoor unit should be running when it’s in heating mode
On the first cold days that a homeowner runs a new heat pump, they’re often surprised to hear the outside unit running. This is because they’re used to air conditioners, and when air conditioners are not set to cool, the outdoor compressor stops running. A heat pump uses the compressor in both modes.
A heat pump sacrifices some cooling power because of the heating power
Not at all! A heat pump in cooling mode is as powerful at cooling a home like an air conditioner of the same size. It doesn’t have to “split” its conditioning power between the two modes.
