Heat pumps are amazing

User: fcummings@gmail.com

Vendor: None

Action: 2144 - Heat & Cool: Heat Pumps

We had a whole-house air-source heat pump installed during construction of our new Acton house in 2019 (pictured here), based on our 6 years of successful experience with a central heat pump in our former house in Massachusetts. The key to their efficiency is that they don’t create heat by burning fuel; instead, they move heat from outside to inside the home (or the reverse in summer). I’m still amazed that this is possible in the winter, but it’s basically the same process as moving heat out of the inside of your refrigerator and freezer. Years ago, people worried about the need for some kind of backup in the very coldest hours of the year. But for us, over the 5-month heating season, backup was only needed for 65 hours, which is only 1.8% of the time. The newest "mini-split" heat pumps are even more effective at low temperatures. A heat pump is one of the biggest reductions in carbon emissions that a home can make. And it’s affordable, especially with electricity generated by the sun!