Why Heat Pumps Get Their Bad Reputation

Many of you who have heat pumps or those of you who have heard of them may wonder why heat pumps get their bad reputation. While other methods of heating, especially radiant flooring, can more more effective, they are also more expensive to install. Let’s address why heat pumps get their bad reputation and answer your concerns with this list of common heat pump problems:

1. Gas and oil systems are usually sized larger than they need to be, and as a result you get used to having instant heat and warming the house in a hurry. A properly working heat pump will heat a house slowly and maintain it with even temperature.
2. If you push the thermostat up to the house warm in a hurry, you will cause the electric heat to come on and raise your electric bill. This can be corrected by the addition of a relay and a lockout thermostat (outside). Just switching off some of the electric stages will go a long way to saving money. In attempts to save money by manually setting back the thermostat will waste your savings. Adding a switch between the terminals on the indoor unit and the thermostat can eliminate this.
3. Heat pumps are usually sized for cooling (for good dehumidification) and the heat is made up of electric resistance heat, which is expensive. If heat pumps had 2-speed compressors and were sized for twice the cooling, then this would be less of a problem.
4. Heat pumps loose their effectiveness (not to be confused with their efficiency) the colder it gets outside forcing you to either use the electric heat or stay cold.
5. Systems that are designed poorly so the ductwork is too small resulting in a lot of air noise and drafts that is not as warm. If you have excessive airflow and a direct drive blower, the motor can be set to a lower speed without any major loss in efficiency.
6. If the defrost circuit is not working right when the unit goes into defrost mode to prevent icing, you may get a blast of cold air. When the unit goes into defrost mode, it is actually air conditioning or cooling for a brief time.

If you are looking to install a new heat pump system, call the experts at LHT Cooling, Heating & Refrigeration, Inc. in Myrtle Beach! They will eliminate why heat pumps get their bad reputation.