About Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps
For climates with moderate heating and cooling needs, heat pumps offer an energy-efficient alternative to furnaces and air conditioners. Like your refrigerator, heat pumps use electricity to move heat from a cool space into a warm, making the cool space cooler and the warm space warmer. During the heating season, heat pumps move heat from the cool outdoors into your warm house; during the cooling season, heat pumps move heat from your cool house into the warm outdoors. Because they move heat rather than generate heat, heat pumps can provide up to 4 times the amount of energy they consume.
Heat Pumps have been identified by EECA (Energy Efficiency Conservation Authority) as the most energy efficient way to heat a home. Heat Pumps, or Air Conditioners as they are often referred to, are also a very efficient and effective method to provide summer cooling. But some Heat Pumps are more efficient than others and the differences in running costs and performance can be significant.
Apart from providing energy efficient heating in winter, heat pumps can also be used to effectively cool a home in summer. The principle of heat pump technology is just reversed at the push of a button, drawing available heat energy in a room and “pumping” this to the outside. This is why a heat pump is also often referred to as an air conditioner or reverse cycle heat pump..
Built in filtration systems offer a defence barrier from common allergen such dust mites and pollen. This is particularly helpful for those suffering from asthma or allergies.
The most common type of heat pump is the air-source heat pump, which transfers heat between your house and the outside air. If you heat with electricity, a heat pump can trim the amount of electricity you use for heating by as much as 30%–40%. High-efficiency heat pumps also dehumidify better than standard central air conditioners, resulting in less energy usage and more cooling comfort in summer months. However, the efficiency of most air-source heat pumps as a heat source drops dramatically at low temperatures, generally making them unsuitable for cold climates, although there are systems that can overcome that problem.
For homes without ducts, air-source heat pumps are also available in a ductless version called a mini-split heat pump. In addition, a special type of air-source heat pump called a "reverse cycle chiller" generates hot and cold water rather than air, allowing it to be used with radiant floor heating systems in heating mode.
