These days, homeowners have more choices than ever when it comes to heating systems, and one choice that has become a very popular option is the heat pump. However, there can be some concern over whether or not a heat pump can provide adequate heating for a home. To understand why this concern comes up, it’s important to understand how a heat pump provides heat to your home, so let’s take a look at that process.
Heating with a Heat Pump
Unlike more traditional heating systems, like furnaces and boilers, heat pumps do not generate heat. What they do is transfer heat from one location to another. Believe it or not, there is heat in the outdoor winter air – it just has to be properly captured and harnessed, and this is what a heat pump does with the help of refrigerant. During the winter months, a heat pump absorbs the available heat in the surrounding air. It then transfers this heat to the heat pump, where it is concentrated. The heat is then dispersed to your home’s living spaces via ductwork or ductless indoor blowers.
The concern comes in when the temperature gets very low: the lower the temperature, the less available heat there is in the air. However, you can offset this in one of two ways: you can choose to install a heat pump that is specially designed for cold weather, or you can use a back-up system like a gas furnace to make sure you have all the heat you need, even on the coldest of days. Today’s heat pumps can heat effectively even when the temperature outside has reached negative numbers.
If you have been considering a heat pump for your home in Mahwah, NJ, call the experts you can count on for advice and installation: DB Heating & Cooling, Inc.