HEAT PUMPS...are they ok? (houses, live, cost of)

[CJ-FROM-NJ]

The houses I have been looking at have heat pumps. Are they any good? Should I replace them with something else? Do they run the bill up?

[erineieio]

When my +30 y/o AC died this summer, I switched over to a heat pump. The oil furnace was fine, but with the ever rising cost of oil & gas I thought that it was the best choice. Oil heat "feels" warmer when it comes out of the vents, but I've been pleased with my heatpump so far!

[mm_mary73]

If I ever build again, I'll use gas. Hate the heat pump.

[gypsychic]

I like my heat pump - works great for me. Pretty economical too for my little energy efficient home.

[Mvn2nc]

No complaints with ours.

[liveInNC]

Originally Posted by CJ-FROM-NJ

...heat pumps. ... Do they run the bill up?

No, the point to a heat pump is that they run the bill DOWN as they generally cost less to operate.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by liveInNC

No, the point to a heat pump is that they run the bill DOWN as they generally cost less to operate.

Especially when gas was so expensive last year

Mine is keeping me very comfortable on this gloomy cold day!

[CJF]

We just put a new one in our church and are very happy with it.

[liveInNC]

Originally Posted by CJ-FROM-NJ

The houses I have been looking at have heat pumps. Are they any good? Should I replace them with something else? Do they run the bill up?

one thing you'll notice about heatpumps is that the air that comes out does not feel as hot as air that comes out of a normal furnace. The air is warm, but not hot, it just runs it for a longer period of time.

The concept of a heatpump goes something like this... if you ever feel the air coming out the back end of an air conditioner (or the air coming off the compressor unit outside) you'll notice that it is warm. The cold gets pushed into the house and the heat is expelled outside. Now imagine turning that air conditioner backwards so that the heat comes into the house and the cold gets pushed outside the house... that's a simplified way of explaining how a heatpump works. The heat is air conditioning put into reverse.

[mm_mary73]

Originally Posted by liveInNC

one thing you'll notice about heatpumps is that the air that comes out does not feel as hot as air that comes out of a normal furnace. The air is warm, but not hot, it just runs it for a longer period of time.

The concept of a heatpump goes something like this... if you ever feel the air coming out the back end of an air conditioner (or the air coming off the compressor unit outside) you'll notice that it is warm. The cold gets pushed into the house and the heat is expelled outside. Now imagine turning that air conditioner backwards so that the heat comes into the house and the cold gets pushed outside the house... that's a simplified way of explaining how a heatpump works. The heat is air conditioning put into reverse.

Exactly why I hate it - I want warm when my solar heat wanes.