heat pump vs AC

16 years ago

I'm in the process of getting bids on replacing our old furance. We live in western Washington. We have a 1600 Sq Ft one story home built in 1954. Insulation put in attic (R30), side walls, crawl space (R30), heat ducts (sealed and R15). New windows. The contractors have given bids both for 95% eff furance w/HP and 95% eff furance w/AC. Gas prices are $1.01/therm. Power runs at 6.2 cents/kwh. The contractors have said that the heat your receive from HP is cooler than that of a furance with AC and the heat setting when using the HP should be a 4 to 5 degree swing. At night we turn our heat down to 60 and when we are at work all day we also set it at 60. They say with the HP we should set the temp at 64 low, 68-69 high, which goes against my grain of keeping it low when not home and at night when we go to bed. They say with a 95% eff unit and AC the heat is warmer and we have the flexability of setting it at the lower temps. What would be the advantage, given the above information, would benefit from the standpoint of cost of running the two different units and longivity of both (with proper maintenance). Also, I have been getting bids on Trane, Lennox and American Standard...leaning toward Trane! I hope I have explained the issue enough to come to the best possible decision, because this is between a $10,000 - $11,000 price tag!!! Thank you for your time and look foward to your answer.

Nick S. Tacoma, WA

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Comments (6)

classicdave
16 years ago
Hybrid Heat is the new in.
Hybrid heat will only enhance your utility savings.
It's all in the thermostat which if you go with the Trane or AM then it will be the Honeywell IAQ that will control what comes on and when. It doesn't matter what temperature you keep it at inside.

Heat Pumps are to maintain your inside Temp while a gas Furnace will give you instant heat.

I would recommend anyone who is buying a new gas furnace and a/c to look into hybrid heat.
Heck if you don't want the heat pump on unless it is 40F outside or higher you can set it up that way or let the heat pump work when it is 10F outside.

What your contractor was probably referring too is that a heat pump maintains heat and if you leave your house cold like at 60F and then want it at 68F when you are home then the heat pump may feel like it is blowing cool air.
You may see a 30 degree difference of air coming out of your vents and at 90F coming out of your vent that to a human body of 98.5F feels like cold air in the winter but it will heat your home.
greendesert
16 years ago
I lived long enough in western WA to know that a heat pump is just not the best solution there because it gets cold enough there that a heat pump is just worthless and they're not all that efficient either (I have 3 of them now). I'd go for the furnace/AC combo, although I don't see much of a point for AC there. Yeah you had a few hot days there last year... we have temps over 100 every day for a month or two here in AZ, but for just a few days, I think it's overkill.
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david_cary
16 years ago
I'm not sure where greendesert get off talking about HP efficiency. Not to be rude but there is in fact no heat source than can touch a heat pump on efficiency.

At 6 cents, a hp is a no brainer. Electric backup would cost about $18 for a million btu. NG at $1 a therm is $10. So hybrid heat would be best but a heat pump will be cheaper down to 15 degrees or so depending on the efficiency of the particular unit. Hybrid is best and almost always has a reasonable payback. I think I paid $1000 extra but save $300 a year easy.
countryboymo
16 years ago
I say heat pump/furnace so when the gas prices swing back up again you are not tied solely to the furnace for heat. If gas prices go up like they did a few years back you would kick yourself hard for not having the heat pump to offset the usage. It also wouldn't take long to offset the price difference between the a/c unit furnace combo vs the heat pump/furnace combo.
northwest_girl
16 years ago
I am looking at this same issue, in Bellevue, WA. I am wondering if the extra efficiency of going to 95% is worth it with a heat pump. Wouldn't 80% with a heat pump do?
briegel
16 years ago
We just did the same thing in Snoqualmie, WA...80% 2-stage heat, variable speed fan furnace with a 14 SEER/8.5 HSPF heat pump. I agree with Northwest Girl that the 80% furnace, if it is 2-stage and variable-speed, should do instead of the 95% furnace.