I have a heat pump that's on today. It's set to 69 and had been running all day although it was 50 degrees outside. I hear it running and think of all the dollars in electricity that are going out the door. I asked both my builder and the hvac installer why the system runs all day and they say when you get below 30 degrees heat pumps loose efficiency. I'll get a few hundred dollar electric bill. I lie to myself and say this is efficient just like my electric dryer that requires 2 cycles to dry a load. I can see through the app how many hours my system has been running. My house is brand new and well insulated.

In my old house I had a gas furnace and gas dryer. It easily got my house to temp and didn't run nearly as as long to maintain the temp and overall was cheaper in monthly cost. That was also a brand new house that was well insulated. Same thing with my clothes dryer. I used to have dry loads before the dryer finished the cycle. The joy on my new house is i have all day sun so in the summer i just hang clothes outside to dry. Its better and faster than the electric dryer.

I tell myself I'm being doing the right thing by choosing electric.

Heat pump guide
https://thezeropercentclub.org/cold-climate-heat-pumps/

Anonymous wrote:We have gas heat on the main floor and a heat pump on the second floor. There is no difference in temperature, even in the coldest of winter.

Heat rises, this would be meaningful if you had a heat pump on the first floor, but you have gas heat supplementing your heat pump.

We have gas heat on the main floor and a heat pump on the second floor. There is no difference in temperature, even in the coldest of winter.

The fossil fuel lobby is strong in this thread!

I've read that heat pumps are considered very efficient, even in Maine.
https://www.efficiencymaine.com/heat-pumps/

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The US Department of Energy along with the state governments of Massachusetts and New York just completed a major study of residential heat pump installations. The study is at:
https://e4thefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Residential-ccASHP-Building-Electrification_060322.pdf

The report is 156 pages, you don't have to read the whole thing, but on page 12 they have summaries of surveys of customers who replaced a different heating system with an air-source heat pump (ASHP):

• Performance issues were uncommon with ASHPs and nearly all customers reported lower bills.
• Customers were highly satisfied with heating and cooling performance (8.5/10 for heating and 9.0/10 for cooling).
• These factors lead to an extremely high likelihood to recommend an ASHP to others (whole-home = 8.9/10 would recommend; primary w/ backup = 9.3/10)

Note that both states are quite a bit colder than DC.

Some people still want gas heat and that is ok. It is different kind of heat that feels nicer. Environmentalist want to tell us what to do then just "we ask you to like what we want you to do change your mindset it is so easy" but that is not how it works.

In an old drafty house you will get cold spots and the hotter air of a gas furnace helps to make up for that. I have a new house that is well-insulated and there are no cold spots, I have heat pumps and I barely notice them at all.

+1 this
It's not that gas heat "feels nicer" it's that it works better to warm a leaky house more evenly.

I said what I said. Gas heat feels nicer. Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up. Gas warm the air in a different way. If all you can offer is a suggestion to make an attitude adjustment in order to align with your preference or agenda, i am not interested.

I don't care if you are not interested. What you are saying is said often, is not really accurate and can be confusing for people interested in buying heat pumps. Two things can be true:
1. Heat pumps can work fine in most climates
2. They don't work fine in every house

And with any HVAC system, choosing the right equipment and proper installation matters. In Maryland contractors are not required to and typically do not do Manual J calculations or blower door tests to size systems. They are usually basing sizing on the existing system and/or their own intuition. Many systems are improperly sized.

Well I care about what I have to say and I am not confusing people. Heat pumps do not heat effectively in very very cold weather. Do they work and not malfunction in very cold weather? Yes. They are plugging along happily doing something, they are not disintegrating into a ball of despair, but what they are not doing is making a home comfortably warm. This has been common knowledge for decade but not environmentalist want to change the narrative for their purpose. Just because you want something to be true doesn't mean it is. And no, I am not going to be uncomfortable in my home for the fuzzy concept of "the environment".

Because technology hasn't improved over the decades? Please don't let facts get in the way of your assumptions.

I think the technology has improved recently so important to check the age and output of system of buying a house with existing system. We had a home with existing heat pump sustem about eight years ago, and it didn’t work well below 30 degrees.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The US Department of Energy along with the state governments of Massachusetts and New York just completed a major study of residential heat pump installations. The study is at:
https://e4thefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Residential-ccASHP-Building-Electrification_060322.pdf

The report is 156 pages, you don't have to read the whole thing, but on page 12 they have summaries of surveys of customers who replaced a different heating system with an air-source heat pump (ASHP):

• Performance issues were uncommon with ASHPs and nearly all customers reported lower bills.
• Customers were highly satisfied with heating and cooling performance (8.5/10 for heating and 9.0/10 for cooling).
• These factors lead to an extremely high likelihood to recommend an ASHP to others (whole-home = 8.9/10 would recommend; primary w/ backup = 9.3/10)

Note that both states are quite a bit colder than DC.

Some people still want gas heat and that is ok. It is different kind of heat that feels nicer. Environmentalist want to tell us what to do then just "we ask you to like what we want you to do change your mindset it is so easy" but that is not how it works.

In an old drafty house you will get cold spots and the hotter air of a gas furnace helps to make up for that. I have a new house that is well-insulated and there are no cold spots, I have heat pumps and I barely notice them at all.

+1 this
It's not that gas heat "feels nicer" it's that it works better to warm a leaky house more evenly.

I said what I said. Gas heat feels nicer. Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up. Gas warm the air in a different way. If all you can offer is a suggestion to make an attitude adjustment in order to align with your preference or agenda, i am not interested.

I don't care if you are not interested. What you are saying is said often, is not really accurate and can be confusing for people interested in buying heat pumps. Two things can be true:
1. Heat pumps can work fine in most climates
2. They don't work fine in every house

And with any HVAC system, choosing the right equipment and proper installation matters. In Maryland contractors are not required to and typically do not do Manual J calculations or blower door tests to size systems. They are usually basing sizing on the existing system and/or their own intuition. Many systems are improperly sized.

Well I care about what I have to say and I am not confusing people. Heat pumps do not heat effectively in very very cold weather. Do they work and not malfunction in very cold weather? Yes. They are plugging along happily doing something, they are not disintegrating into a ball of despair, but what they are not doing is making a home comfortably warm. This has been common knowledge for decade but not environmentalist want to change the narrative for their purpose. Just because you want something to be true doesn't mean it is. And no, I am not going to be uncomfortable in my home for the fuzzy concept of "the environment".

That's an awfully broad and categorical statement. Yet the research posted earlier shows that in far colder climates than DC people who switched to heat pumps are overwhelmingly satisfied with the heat produced and almost always save money.

To be fair they probably saved money because they were previously using oil heat.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The US Department of Energy along with the state governments of Massachusetts and New York just completed a major study of residential heat pump installations. The study is at:
https://e4thefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Residential-ccASHP-Building-Electrification_060322.pdf

The report is 156 pages, you don't have to read the whole thing, but on page 12 they have summaries of surveys of customers who replaced a different heating system with an air-source heat pump (ASHP):

• Performance issues were uncommon with ASHPs and nearly all customers reported lower bills.
• Customers were highly satisfied with heating and cooling performance (8.5/10 for heating and 9.0/10 for cooling).
• These factors lead to an extremely high likelihood to recommend an ASHP to others (whole-home = 8.9/10 would recommend; primary w/ backup = 9.3/10)

Note that both states are quite a bit colder than DC.

Some people still want gas heat and that is ok. It is different kind of heat that feels nicer. Environmentalist want to tell us what to do then just "we ask you to like what we want you to do change your mindset it is so easy" but that is not how it works.

In an old drafty house you will get cold spots and the hotter air of a gas furnace helps to make up for that. I have a new house that is well-insulated and there are no cold spots, I have heat pumps and I barely notice them at all.

+1 this
It's not that gas heat "feels nicer" it's that it works better to warm a leaky house more evenly.

I said what I said. Gas heat feels nicer. Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up. Gas warm the air in a different way. If all you can offer is a suggestion to make an attitude adjustment in order to align with your preference or agenda, i am not interested.

I don't care if you are not interested. What you are saying is said often, is not really accurate and can be confusing for people interested in buying heat pumps. Two things can be true:
1. Heat pumps can work fine in most climates
2. They don't work fine in every house

And with any HVAC system, choosing the right equipment and proper installation matters. In Maryland contractors are not required to and typically do not do Manual J calculations or blower door tests to size systems. They are usually basing sizing on the existing system and/or their own intuition. Many systems are improperly sized.

Well I care about what I have to say and I am not confusing people. Heat pumps do not heat effectively in very very cold weather. Do they work and not malfunction in very cold weather? Yes. They are plugging along happily doing something, they are not disintegrating into a ball of despair, but what they are not doing is making a home comfortably warm. This has been common knowledge for decade but not environmentalist want to change the narrative for their purpose. Just because you want something to be true doesn't mean it is. And no, I am not going to be uncomfortable in my home for the fuzzy concept of "the environment".

Stop being so dramatic. Nobody is forcing you to get a heat pump. In the DMV they aren't being pushed very hard at all. Relax.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The US Department of Energy along with the state governments of Massachusetts and New York just completed a major study of residential heat pump installations. The study is at:
https://e4thefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Residential-ccASHP-Building-Electrification_060322.pdf

The report is 156 pages, you don't have to read the whole thing, but on page 12 they have summaries of surveys of customers who replaced a different heating system with an air-source heat pump (ASHP):

• Performance issues were uncommon with ASHPs and nearly all customers reported lower bills.
• Customers were highly satisfied with heating and cooling performance (8.5/10 for heating and 9.0/10 for cooling).
• These factors lead to an extremely high likelihood to recommend an ASHP to others (whole-home = 8.9/10 would recommend; primary w/ backup = 9.3/10)

Note that both states are quite a bit colder than DC.

Some people still want gas heat and that is ok. It is different kind of heat that feels nicer. Environmentalist want to tell us what to do then just "we ask you to like what we want you to do change your mindset it is so easy" but that is not how it works.

In an old drafty house you will get cold spots and the hotter air of a gas furnace helps to make up for that. I have a new house that is well-insulated and there are no cold spots, I have heat pumps and I barely notice them at all.

+1 this
It's not that gas heat "feels nicer" it's that it works better to warm a leaky house more evenly.

I said what I said. Gas heat feels nicer. Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up. Gas warm the air in a different way. If all you can offer is a suggestion to make an attitude adjustment in order to align with your preference or agenda, i am not interested.

I don't care if you are not interested. What you are saying is said often, is not really accurate and can be confusing for people interested in buying heat pumps. Two things can be true:
1. Heat pumps can work fine in most climates
2. They don't work fine in every house

And with any HVAC system, choosing the right equipment and proper installation matters. In Maryland contractors are not required to and typically do not do Manual J calculations or blower door tests to size systems. They are usually basing sizing on the existing system and/or their own intuition. Many systems are improperly sized.

Well I care about what I have to say and I am not confusing people. Heat pumps do not heat effectively in very very cold weather. Do they work and not malfunction in very cold weather? Yes. They are plugging along happily doing something, they are not disintegrating into a ball of despair, but what they are not doing is making a home comfortably warm. This has been common knowledge for decade but not environmentalist want to change the narrative for their purpose. Just because you want something to be true doesn't mean it is. And no, I am not going to be uncomfortable in my home for the fuzzy concept of "the environment".

That's an awfully broad and categorical statement. Yet the research posted earlier shows that in far colder climates than DC people who switched to heat pumps are overwhelmingly satisfied with the heat produced and almost always save money.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The US Department of Energy along with the state governments of Massachusetts and New York just completed a major study of residential heat pump installations. The study is at:
https://e4thefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Residential-ccASHP-Building-Electrification_060322.pdf

The report is 156 pages, you don't have to read the whole thing, but on page 12 they have summaries of surveys of customers who replaced a different heating system with an air-source heat pump (ASHP):

• Performance issues were uncommon with ASHPs and nearly all customers reported lower bills.
• Customers were highly satisfied with heating and cooling performance (8.5/10 for heating and 9.0/10 for cooling).
• These factors lead to an extremely high likelihood to recommend an ASHP to others (whole-home = 8.9/10 would recommend; primary w/ backup = 9.3/10)

Note that both states are quite a bit colder than DC.

Some people still want gas heat and that is ok. It is different kind of heat that feels nicer. Environmentalist want to tell us what to do then just "we ask you to like what we want you to do change your mindset it is so easy" but that is not how it works.

In an old drafty house you will get cold spots and the hotter air of a gas furnace helps to make up for that. I have a new house that is well-insulated and there are no cold spots, I have heat pumps and I barely notice them at all.

+1 this
It's not that gas heat "feels nicer" it's that it works better to warm a leaky house more evenly.

I said what I said. Gas heat feels nicer. Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up. Gas warm the air in a different way. If all you can offer is a suggestion to make an attitude adjustment in order to align with your preference or agenda, i am not interested.

Are you confusing gas heat with radiator heat? You can have forced air heat with gas, it works exactly the same as an air-to-air heat pump. Gas will heat the air hotter so the air coming out of the radiator is hotter. You can also run radiators with an air-to-water heat pump, it heats exactly the same as a gas boiler, just not as hot.

No I am not confused.

Because the statement "Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up. Gas warm the air in a different way. " is non-sensical.

Yep. There are two parts to a heating system, how the heat is generated and how the heat is distributed. Heat can be generated by burning gas, oil, coal or wood, or a heat pump or electric resistance, and it can be distributed by circulating water, steam or air. You can combine any kind of heat generation with any kind of distribution, the only combination I've never seen is a heat pump with steam distribution.

"Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up," is a description of distribution, not generation. It's nonsensical. It's like someone asking, "is this book a paperback?" and you responding, "it's non-fiction." Two unrelated concepts.

We have multiple zones. The bedrooms on the upper level has a heat pump. The rest is gas.

The heat pump the builder installed was awful. The air was actually cold once it got below 50. We upgraded to a larger one and it is better. The heat pump air is drafty. I've never believed in keeping the heat low and being uncomfortable in my home so the thermostat upstairs has to be set higher than the others for me to feel comfortable.

The negative person on here is just spreading lies and should be ignored. So much drama. Thanks to everyone with good facts.

Here's my fact: Our new addition has a heat pump (old part is gas). It is efficient and cheap cheap to run. I do notice that stepping into that area of the house feels nice and warm but that could be because I first pass through a chillyish large foyer so not a good test. It feels good in there though. I'm moving around all day so don't notice the air. At night I do notice that the blowing air does feel a bit "cool blowing" but it's not unpleasant because the air in general is warm and I'm in bed. Hope that helps!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The US Department of Energy along with the state governments of Massachusetts and New York just completed a major study of residential heat pump installations. The study is at:
https://e4thefuture.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Residential-ccASHP-Building-Electrification_060322.pdf

The report is 156 pages, you don't have to read the whole thing, but on page 12 they have summaries of surveys of customers who replaced a different heating system with an air-source heat pump (ASHP):

• Performance issues were uncommon with ASHPs and nearly all customers reported lower bills.
• Customers were highly satisfied with heating and cooling performance (8.5/10 for heating and 9.0/10 for cooling).
• These factors lead to an extremely high likelihood to recommend an ASHP to others (whole-home = 8.9/10 would recommend; primary w/ backup = 9.3/10)

Note that both states are quite a bit colder than DC.

Some people still want gas heat and that is ok. It is different kind of heat that feels nicer. Environmentalist want to tell us what to do then just "we ask you to like what we want you to do change your mindset it is so easy" but that is not how it works.

In an old drafty house you will get cold spots and the hotter air of a gas furnace helps to make up for that. I have a new house that is well-insulated and there are no cold spots, I have heat pumps and I barely notice them at all.

+1 this
It's not that gas heat "feels nicer" it's that it works better to warm a leaky house more evenly.

I said what I said. Gas heat feels nicer. Heat pumps move air around a room to make the temp go up. Gas warm the air in a different way. If all you can offer is a suggestion to make an attitude adjustment in order to align with your preference or agenda, i am not interested.

I don't care if you are not interested. What you are saying is said often, is not really accurate and can be confusing for people interested in buying heat pumps. Two things can be true:
1. Heat pumps can work fine in most climates
2. They don't work fine in every house

And with any HVAC system, choosing the right equipment and proper installation matters. In Maryland contractors are not required to and typically do not do Manual J calculations or blower door tests to size systems. They are usually basing sizing on the existing system and/or their own intuition. Many systems are improperly sized.

Well I care about what I have to say and I am not confusing people. Heat pumps do not heat effectively in very very cold weather. Do they work and not malfunction in very cold weather? Yes. They are plugging along happily doing something, they are not disintegrating into a ball of despair, but what they are not doing is making a home comfortably warm. This has been common knowledge for decade but not environmentalist want to change the narrative for their purpose. Just because you want something to be true doesn't mean it is. And no, I am not going to be uncomfortable in my home for the fuzzy concept of "the environment".