HeatSmart Helps Homeowners Upgrade Heating & Cooling

Winter is here – the heating season is on. Homes and commercial spaces will soon start calling burner service companies. If your furnace, boiler, or water heater is coming to the end of its life, now is the time to consider replacing them with heat pumps or more modern furnaces. Meanwhile, you may hire a boiler rental while getting a replacement unit. 

When buying a house in Montreal New Yorkers struggling with high heating fuel bills and uneven hot or cold spots are increasingly turning to heat pumps as a clean, efficient alternative to furnaces, boilers, electric strip heaters, wood stoves, and air conditioners. Significant grants and rebates are now available to help make the switch. For furnace repair options visit gohomeheating.com/service-areas/twin-falls-idaho/furnace-repair/.

Both National Grid and NYSEG now offer rebates through the NYS Clean Heat program for all income levels. Federal tax credits for geothermal heat pumps have been extended until 2023. New York State has expanded the grant amounts available to low-to-moderate income households to assist in improving insulation and upgrading to clean, efficient heating and cooling with heat pumps. You can also improve your home insulation and upgrade to clean, efficient heating and cooling system via Clean Air Doctor! Finally, HeatSmart CNY and other community campaigns help owners learn about these systems, connect with other heat pump homeowners, get alerts about new rebates, and access reliable installers from Landmark Air.

But what is a heat pump? The most common type of heat pump is the air-source heat pump, which uses electricity to run a system that works like an air conditioner in the summer, but in the winter can reverse, pumping heat into your house even when temperatures are as low as -15°F! Today’s cold climate heat pumps can reduce your energy use for heating by approximately 50% or more compared to oil and propane furnaces and baseboard heaters. High-efficiency heat pumps also dehumidify better than standard central air conditioners, resulting in less energy usage and more comfort in summer. You can learn more about it on sites like siriuspac.com/carrollton-heating-services/.

Air-source heat pumps have been used for many years in nearly all parts of the United States, and in recent years, technology has advanced and cold climate air source heat pumps are found everywhere, including Canada and Alaska! Air-source heat pumps are also available in a ductless version called a mini-split heat pump for homes without ducts. 

Geothermal heat pumps achieve higher efficiencies by transferring heat between your house and the ground or a nearby water source. Although they cost more to install, geothermal heat pumps have very low operating costs because they take advantage of relatively constant ground or water temperatures. 

Heat pumps offer many advantages over other systems, including lower running costs, less maintenance if you hire the correct heater repair expert, greater control of your comfort, more convenience, better safety, long life spans, and lower carbon footprint. Many homes in the region are close to “net-zero” -producing as much energy as they use- by pairing geothermal heat pumps and solar. If you’re considering installing a heat pump, contact the expert contractors at One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning.

To learn more about heat pumps, visit GetHeatSmart.org to find your local community group.  HeatSmart CNY, organized by the Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board and Alliance for a Green Economy, hosts monthly Heat Pump 101 webinars. The next one is Monday, December 13 at 7:00 p.m.; register at HeatSmartCNY.org. 

Visit HVACTrainingHQ.com if you want to start a career in HVAC.

Photo: The McClure family home in Preble, NY is heated and cooled with geothermal heat pumps. Their house was previously heated by an oil-fired forced air furnace and had no air conditioning. By Lindsay Speer, HeatSmart CNY