Are heat pumps the answer?
Here in Southern New England, morning temps have mostly been in the 20s. We have a natural gas furnace and forced air keeping the house at 68°F.
We had a heat pump in our house when I was growing up in East Tennessee. My dad, an MIT-trained engineer, was proud of the money he was saving in the land of the TVA by using a heat pump for both AC and heating. Judging from the air emerging from the register, I suspect most of the savings came from tepid air in the winter and barely coolish air in the summer. Hell, why not just turn the damn thing off and save even more?
I understand that heat pump technology is improved since the 1960s.
“In five short years, Massachusetts aims to have at least a half-million homes running off heat pumps, those cutting-edge devices that can wrench energy from the air and convert it to heat or cool a building.
“But there is a problem: Heat pumps are powered by electricity, and in Massachusetts, electric rates are among the highest in the nation.
“When the temperature falls well below freezing, as it has this month, some residents using heat pumps say their monthly electric bills are soaring — some as high as $700 or more — because heat pumps are less efficient at low temperatures. While many homeowners say they’re happy with their purchase and saw just slightly higher bills during cold months in recent years, many hit with big bills this winter say they’re feeling buyer’s remorse.
“In Canton, Richard Sagotsky said his experience has been awful — though he takes some of the blame, opting for lower-cost heat pumps that were less efficient. Still, the bills during cold months are punishing, leaving him filled with regret. “I wanted to save the planet,” he said.”
Many of us want to save the planet, but at what cost, both to our wallets and our comfort? Here’s hoping the technology improves. The planet can’t afford to wait much longer.
the challenges of heat pumps in New England
We had a heat pump in our house when I was growing up in East Tennessee. My dad, an MIT-trained engineer, was proud of the money he was saving in the land of the TVA by using a heat pump for both AC and heating. Judging from the air emerging from the register, I suspect most of the savings came from tepid air in the winter and barely coolish air in the summer. Hell, why not just turn the damn thing off and save even more?
I understand that heat pump technology is improved since the 1960s.
“In five short years, Massachusetts aims to have at least a half-million homes running off heat pumps, those cutting-edge devices that can wrench energy from the air and convert it to heat or cool a building.
“But there is a problem: Heat pumps are powered by electricity, and in Massachusetts, electric rates are among the highest in the nation.
“When the temperature falls well below freezing, as it has this month, some residents using heat pumps say their monthly electric bills are soaring — some as high as $700 or more — because heat pumps are less efficient at low temperatures. While many homeowners say they’re happy with their purchase and saw just slightly higher bills during cold months in recent years, many hit with big bills this winter say they’re feeling buyer’s remorse.
“In Canton, Richard Sagotsky said his experience has been awful — though he takes some of the blame, opting for lower-cost heat pumps that were less efficient. Still, the bills during cold months are punishing, leaving him filled with regret. “I wanted to save the planet,” he said.”
Many of us want to save the planet, but at what cost, both to our wallets and our comfort? Here’s hoping the technology improves. The planet can’t afford to wait much longer.
the challenges of heat pumps in New England
as a resident of Fairfield county Connecticut residing in a condo, they built the unit with a heat pump. More than adequate in the summer for cooling.
In the winter for heating, you really have to compromise on the 10 degree F. mornings.
But I think, compared to heating oil it is better. Our condo builder never negotiated with the gas utility, simplified their construction costs by making it electricity only (I think the builder should have got a subsidy from the electric utility for that choice but I was not there to point that out)
my conclusion is heat pumps are fine for Fairfield county Connecticut and south of that.
MA. VT, NH ME NO WAY
CT is the dividing line
Joel:
We are fortunate enough not to have extremely cold weather. As you and the rest at Angry Bear know, the temperature in the Southwest does not get terribly cold. This last Summer, we were seeing temps as high as 115+ (I forgot high) degrees.
The last electric bill for our 1500 square foot home was $60.00. We keep it at 68 degrees which is similar to what we did north of Ann Arbor, Michigan. Cooler makes for better sleeping for us. In the Summer, of course we increase it to where we are comfortable. Humidity is not a problem here. We wish we had a bit more of it.
July of 2024, the electric bill was $188. Rather than payout the $188 I set money aside for the hot months. June and August were in the one-fifties and it keeps decreasing after July and reverses or starts to increase come Spring. A Heat Pump works in the Southwest in our smaller homes.
In Michigan, we had 2500 square feet. Gas heat and electric air conditioning. Summer less natural gas used and more electricity up to $200. In Winter more natural gas at $180.00. Our energy bill in Michigan was much higher. However, the home was 1000 square feet larger.
People nearby us often have two heat pumps if they have two stories and more square footage. Smaller and one story is better even with more insulation. Cooling the upstairs I believe is problematic for them.
My $.02
I live in Connecticut. I have a 4 zone mini split heat pump & AC installed last year. I use it when the temperature is above 25F and am very impressed with the extremely warm air it provides. I have solar panels and went into winter with over $800 in credit on my electric bill. So far I have only used about half of the credit. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act the energy savings will pay for the solar panels, AC/Heat pump, and pellet stove in about 5 years.
Extremely cold air temperatures are no problem for a heat pump, if you have access to a productive well, and can warm the evaporator coil with a continuous flow of well water. Even if you don’t, you can use water circulating through a large subsurface set of pipes, although the latter requires some excavation investment.
@rick,
Extremely cold air temperatures are a huge problem for a heat pump if you don’t have access to a productive well. My daughter, who lives in MA, has mini-split heat pumps. But she doesn’t have a well. A high school classmate (now a PhD engineer) who lives in North Andover MA had his yard dug up to install a subsurface heat exchange heat pump. Years ago, our high school in East Tennessee dug up a field to install subsurface heat exchange pipes for heat pumps.
Most folks don’t have the resources to do subsurface heat exchange.