Updating Your HVAC Unit

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Updating Your HVAC Unit

Growing up, I spent a lot of time at my paternal grandmother’s home during the hot summer months. I grew up in the southern United States where the temperatures routinely soared to the triple digits on some summer days. Unfortunately, my grandmother only had one small window air conditioning unit in her sprawling farmhouse. On particularly hot days, my grandmother, my numerous cousins, and I would hover around this tiny air conditioning system all day long. Sadly, my dear grandmother died before she had the opportunity to update her HVAC unit. If you’re tired of using inadequate window air conditioners, consider replacing them with a central heating and air conditioning unit. On this blog, you will discover the many benefits of choosing a central heating and air conditioning system.

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What Exactly Is A Heat Pump?

If you live in a cold climate, you're probably all too familiar with your furnace working overtime to keep your home warm during the winter months. What about those random mild days when your furnace is running even though it's not really necessary? That's where a heat pump comes in.

Heat pumps are heating and cooling systems that move heat from one place to another. In the summer, they move heat from your home to the outdoors, and in the winter, they do the reverse. That means that on those mild winter days, a heat pump can take the heat that's already in the air outside and use it to warm your home, which is much more efficient than running your furnace.

How Do Heat Pumps Work?

Ross Tretheway, an HVAC expert from This Old House, states, "[h]eat pumps work by finding and moving heat in and out of a building." In other words, the refrigerant in the system is compressed, which raises its temperature. As it flows through the unit, the heat is released outside, and cold air returns. The opposite cycle is performed in the winter.

This process is then repeated over and over again to maintain a comfortable temperature inside your home.

Are There Different Types of Heat Pumps?

There are different types of heat pumps, but most homes today use either an air source or a ground source heat pump.

  • Air source. Air-source heat pumps are the most common type of heat pump. They use the outdoor air as their source of heat in the winter and as their sink for heat in the summer.
  • Ground-source. On the other hand, ground-source heat pumps use the ground as their source of heat in the winter and their sink for heat in the summer. As a result, ground-source heat pumps are more expensive than air-source heat pumps, but they're also more efficient since the ground temperature is much more stable than the air temperature throughout the year.

What Are The Advantages of Heat Pumps?

One of the biggest advantages of heat pumps is that they're very efficient, much more so than furnaces or air conditioners. They also have very few moving parts, so there is less chance of breakage, and they don't require as much maintenance as other types of HVAC systems. Additionally, since they don't burn fossil fuels as furnaces do, they don't produce any harmful emissions. And finally, heat pumps can be used for both heating and cooling, so you don't need separate systems for each function.

Heat pumps can help you save money on your energy bill while also keeping your home at a comfortable temperature year-round. Contact your local HVAC company today and ask about heat pump services in your home.


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