As the winter approaches, this may just be the best time to replace your withering heat pump. Now more than ever, it’s important to know heat pump features so that you can make the most informed decision for your Los Angeles area home. Here are some features to keep an eye out for:
- Two-stage thermostat — Just as the name indicates, there are two stages of operation. The heat pump begins with the activation of the refrigeration system. If the cold weather is too much for this first stage to counteract interior heat loss, then stage two kicks in. This is where the electric resistance coils come into play in order to heat your home if the first stage failed. Utilizing one stage at a time, and only as needed, can help save a good amount of money.
- Demand-defrost control — Some heat pumps activate the defroster at set intervals, regardless of the presence of ice. As you can imagine, this can waste quite a bit of energy when it isn’t needed. A demand-defrost control, on the other hand, only switches on when ice is present.
- Variable speed-blowers — A variable-speed blower moves at different speeds to control the flow of heat through the ducts and into your home, rather than blowing at full force all the time. By maintaining control over this speed as needed, a heat pump is more efficient, which means your utility bills will be lower.
- Two-stage compressors — Older heat pumps featured a single stage compressor, which means that when the unit was switched on, the air would always flow at full speed. Newer heat pumps, however, now feature a two-stage compressor. With this new type, the unit is able to alter the amount of force being used to push air out of the registers, depending on the needs of the home at any given time.
If you would like further assistance with heat pump features, or for questions regarding home comfort, please don’t hesitate to contact the experts at Around the Clock Air Conditioning & Heating, Inc. We have been serving the HVAC needs of Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley since 1967.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Los Angeles, North Hollywood and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about heat pump features and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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