Whether you’re ready to purchase your very first air conditioning system or you’re simply replacing your old one, you have a couple of different options. You can choose to go with a traditional central air conditioning unit or you can opt for a heat pump. Many people are confused when they hear the term heat pump because it sounds like this unit only heats your home, but that’s not exactly true.
What Is a Heat Pump?
When you actually take a look at its name, a heat pump works to pump heat from one location to another. In the wintertime, it pumps heat from the air outside into your house to warm it up. During the summer, it pumps heat from inside of your home and takes it outside. Simply put, a heat pump will effectively cool your house during the hot summer months.
How Exactly Does It Work?
A heat pump works by using refrigerant to transport heat from one area to another. This system works based on the physical property that heat always naturally wants to move to low-pressure cold air. A heat pump has three main components that all work in unison to provide warm or cold air for a house. These include an indoor air handler unit, copper tubing with refrigerant in it, and an outdoor condenser unit. The indoor air handler has a coil, referred to as the evaporator coil, while the outdoor condenser unit has a coil known as the condenser coil.
When it comes to cooling your home, the process starts with refrigerant entering the evaporator coil. The refrigerant is cold and low pressure. The blower fan inside of your indoor air handler will force warm air from your home over the evaporator coil. As heat naturally does, it will transfer from the air to the low-pressure refrigerant. The remaining cold air continues to be pushed through the supply ductwork and out to the rooms in your residence.
The now-hot refrigerant takes on a higher pressure due to its heat absorption. This system’s compressor works to pump the hot refrigerant to your outdoor condenser unit. As it enters the evaporator coil, the blower fan and the condenser unit will blow outside air across the coil. Heat will naturally transfer to the low-pressure air outside. The remaining refrigerant will continue to flow from the condenser coil to the expansion valve. At this point, refrigerant is returned to having a low pressure, which allows it to travel back to the evaporator coil and repeat the entire process all over again.
Ductless and Ducted Systems
Heat pumps are available in two different styles. These include the ductless mini-split system and the ducted system. A ducted system works very similarly to a central air conditioning system. It simply relies on ductwork to circulate cold air throughout your home.
On the other hand, a ductless mini-split system eliminates the need for ductwork. Rather, this system uses multiple indoor mini-split units to deliver cold or warm air to each individual room of your home. It’s easiest to think of mini-split units as indoor air handler units. Refrigerant flows directly to each mini-split unit throughout your house and performs the cooling process. A ductless system is typically ideal for older homes that don’t already have ductwork installed. This simply comes down to the fact that trying to install ductwork after a house is built can be invasive and expensive to do.
How Efficient Are They?
When it comes to the energy efficiency of using a heat pump for cooling or a central air conditioning system, they offer the same efficiency level. However, it would be disingenuous for us to not note that ductwork can play a big role in the overall efficiency of your cooling system. Ductwork that’s over five years old can have gaps and leaks that allow your conditioned air to escape into cavities throughout your house. The EPA suggests that homeowners can lose up to 30% of their conditioned air through these leaks.
It’s important to keep this in mind when comparing traditional central air conditioning systems with modern-day ductless mini-split systems. Because ductless systems don’t rely on ductwork to deliver cold air, they don’t have any conditioned air loss. This makes ductless units up to 30% more efficient than central air conditioning systems that have aging ductwork.
The Benefits of a Heat Pump Over Central AC
When you’re in the market for a new cooling system, it’s important to understand the benefits that each system can offer you. That way, you can make a better-informed decision about which one to buy. We’re going to discuss some of the biggest benefits that you’ll gain from having a heat pump over choosing a central air conditioning system for your home.
Cleaner Air
When you opt to go with a ductless mini-split system, you get the added advantage of cleaner indoor air. While both a central air conditioning system and a ductless mini-split system will effectively filter the air, the ductless mini-split system is going to offer more filtering. This simply comes down to the fact that a central air conditioning system only has one filter that’s positioned within the return ductwork. Ductwork is also well-known to accumulate airborne toxins over time, which can further decrease the quality of air in your residence.
When it comes to a ductless mini-split system, each unit will have its own air filter. This will allow it to effectively filter more air. Additionally, mini-split units are specifically designed to offer continuous cooling. With a central air conditioning system, the system will kick on and cool down your house. Then, it will turn off and wait for your home to heat back up until it kicks back on again.
On the other hand, a ductless mini-split system is designed to not only initially cool your home but to also continuously run at a low level. This helps to continually move air throughout your home so that it can be actively filtered around the clock. Furthermore, it comes with the benefit of a more comfortable environment with fewer temperature swings.
Tax Incentives
Another important benefit to realize that you can get from a heat pump is a federal tax incentive. All heat pumps are eligible to receive a tax incentive of up to $3,200. You may even find that your local municipality or your state government offers similar tax incentives. This is part of the government’s effort to encourage homeowners to be more energy efficient. Fortunately, for you, this means getting some of your upfront investment back from the purchase of your new heat pump.
A Note on Heating
Another benefit of a heat pump that’s worth mentioning is it can provide both heating and cooling for your home. Instead of having to purchase two separate systems, you can focus on one main system to handle your comfort needs throughout the entire year.
Helpful Heat Pump Services
Northern Air Plumbing & Heating offers helpful heat pump services for homeowners throughout the entire Aitkin, MN community. Our technicians can help with all of your cooling, heating, plumbing, geothermal, indoor air quality, air exchanger, and air purifier needs. Simply call us today to schedule your next service consultation or heating repair with one of our knowledgeable HVAC technicians.
Tags: heat pumps, Heating Repair