Heat Pumps - Page 2

flickerbulb · ‎03-09-2010

I live in the SE and heat pumps are the norm,

A 10-12 year old unit is considered old down here and may need to be replaced,

I replaced mine a couple of years ago and the new one is much more efficient.

I never turn on the heat because it is very expensive.

Tonight it will be in the 20s with the wind howling so I will be using my Duraflames!

Sweetbay magnolia · ‎04-14-2013

Our heat pump does a fine job - the system automatically switches from HP to all electric (or a combination) based on need (and it was 2 degrees here this AM). So like you, OP, ours works fine at what it sets out to do. I am perfectly comfortable, temp-wise. It is dry.

I've had gas heat, too, and honestly, winter is dry, regardless, at least where I live. A wood stove might even be worse. I do use a humidifier in the bedroom, leave water in saucers under houseplants, cut back on the bathroom exhaust fan, etc, in the winter. You might consider a whole house humidifier. I have my reasons, but I wouldn't do that, though many do and it works.

Our house is more humid than the ideal in summer, but much of that is where the air handler for the system is located - it's in the un-conditioned crawl space under the house. For a whole host of reasons this (and how the house was designed and built) contributes to humidity, but honestly, we're still very comfortable. A de-humidifier may be your answer there.

Heat pump compressors burn out more quickly than those used for A/C only, because they also run during the heating season.

Your best bet may be consulting with a reputable HVAC company in your area.

@granddi

Cogito ergo sum

Carmie · ‎10-25-2010

We have a heat pump and we love it. I am in PA where the summers are hot and humid and the winters are freezing cold. My house is always comfortable and my electric bills are not too bad. My son is a HVAC technician and he installed a new system for us a few years ago.

We have always lived in gas heated homes before, I I hated it. The bills were always way too high and the house was super dry. You use electricity and gas...both...to control the temp with gas. My furniture did not do well with dry air and everyone had nose bleeds.

And we were always cold because we turned down the heat to avoid those big gas and electric bills.

3suwm5 · ‎06-15-2016

We had a heat pump in a home years ago. It didn't work worth a darn, a/c did a lousy job and so did the heater.

I'd replace it asap, if possible.

software · ‎06-08-2016

@granddi wrote:
We just moved into a home with a heat pump (heating and AC system). Our previous homes used traditional gas heating and elect AC.

The unit is about 10-12 years old and seems to be doing a good job. My complaint is the humidity inside the house runs very high when the AC is going and very low when the Heat is going.

Any thoughts or experiences in using Heat Pumps.

What part of the country do you live?

I'm in the south, love my heat pump

Shop Till you Drop · ‎03-10-2010

Thank you Geezerette. I finally was able to make an update on Schmoo's page.

riley1 · ‎03-10-2010

I'm another one in the Southeast and agree, Heat pumps (HVac) systems are the norm.

Our previous unit was the original to the house and died at around 13 1/2 yrs old. That is old for a unit.

We replaced ours in 2016 and the new unit is much more efficient.

Yours might just be wearing out and you should have it checked for servicing in any event.

Kachina624 · ‎03-10-2010

@Tigriss wrote:
I'm on the opposite side of things. I live in the deep southeast and heat pumps are normal for us. In the winter we use humidifiers if needed, but we are humid down here anyway. In the summer our A/C pulls the humidity out of the air, which is one of the ways it lowers the temperature since humidity magnifies the temperature. You may need to get it serviced if it isn't cooling or heating enough depending on where you live in the country.

The building I work in has a swamp cooler, a coil with water running over it and fan that blows air to cool the building. It does not work down here because of the humidity. It is also expensive to fix since it seems it the only one in the region. We have to have parts custom made for it when it breaks, which is yearly at this point. I do think it was an under the table deal when it was decided to use this kind of A/C. We don't have normal heat but an electric coil that is not cutting it this week with the temps in the 20s, snow, and ice in my yard and the wind chill at 9. Things are due to warm up down here by the end of the week, but it is very cold and our roads and vehicles are not made for this kind of weather. I stayed home today! Swamp coolers do work much better in the dryer climates, but not our moist one.

I would talk to the neighbors about their units and see if mine is not typical for the area or get it changed out if it isn't serviceable/cost efficient.

@Tigriss. I live near Albuquerque where swamp coolers are very common. I've seen the humidity here as low as 0%. It costs me under $50/mo to run mine and there's no way I'd trade it for refrigerated air. All I pay for are extra water and electricity to run a fan, no compressir. I've never heard of them being used any place except for areas with very low humidity since they depend on rapid evaporation to operate. I have a normal gas furnace for heat, and it can get very cold. It has been down to -14° since I've lived here.

Utility companies love heat pumps because the compressor on them runs all year with heat or AC.

New Mexico☀️Land Of Enchantment

granddi · ‎03-16-2010

Thanks for the reports. I guess we dont hate it enought to get new system ---yet.

Having a routine check up soon, so we will ask questions.

Tigriss · ‎03-12-2010

@Kachina624 wrote:
@Tigriss wrote:
I'm on the opposite side of things. I live in the deep southeast and heat pumps are normal for us. In the winter we use humidifiers if needed, but we are humid down here anyway. In the summer our A/C pulls the humidity out of the air, which is one of the ways it lowers the temperature since humidity magnifies the temperature. You may need to get it serviced if it isn't cooling or heating enough depending on where you live in the country.

The building I work in has a swamp cooler, a coil with water running over it and fan that blows air to cool the building. It does not work down here because of the humidity. It is also expensive to fix since it seems it the only one in the region. We have to have parts custom made for it when it breaks, which is yearly at this point. I do think it was an under the table deal when it was decided to use this kind of A/C. We don't have normal heat but an electric coil that is not cutting it this week with the temps in the 20s, snow, and ice in my yard and the wind chill at 9. Things are due to warm up down here by the end of the week, but it is very cold and our roads and vehicles are not made for this kind of weather. I stayed home today! Swamp coolers do work much better in the dryer climates, but not our moist one.

I would talk to the neighbors about their units and see if mine is not typical for the area or get it changed out if it isn't serviceable/cost efficient.
@Tigriss. I live near Albuquerque where swamp coolers are very common. I've seen the humidity here as low as 0%. It costs me under $50/mo to run mine and there's no way I'd trade it for refrigerated air. All I pay for are extra water and electricity to run a fan, no compressir. I've never heard of them being used any place except for areas with very low humidity since they depend on rapid evaporation to operate. I have a normal gas furnace for heat, and it can get very cold. It has been down to -14° since I've lived here.

Utility companies love heat pumps because the compressor on them runs all year with heat or AC.

I thought the same thing. I've only run into swamp coolers in the desert southwest, not the humid southeast. It made me wonder what kind of "good ole' boy" got his friend a contract for this. It has been broken every year I've been there. Summer 2016 it was dead and the boss many didn't care to get it fixed but we have a sealed building with no ventilation. It wasn't until several of the higher-ups were visiting and asked why it was so hot, so I told them about how long it has been broken and that it was already dead last summer but nothing was done about it. They got portable A/C units in, which didn't work because the heat they sucked in didn't get vented. Their 11K bill for one month of use was enough to get the boss man to get it fixed right! He is now long gone and we have a new boss. Now the issue is heating for the winter. The unit only cools, no heat, so with single digit wind chills and teens for temps down here this week, we have layered up and suffered. I have a convection radiator space heater that I bought and brought in. We technically aren't supposed to have them, but until they put heaters in our rooms mine stays! The air intake for the chiller is in our woodshop area, so it sucks in sawdust and the filters aren't maintained, so it will break again soon! This is the "good ole' boy" system! When will people learn to just do the right thing from the beginning?