Heating

How A Furnace Works

A Gas Furnace produces heat by igniting natural gas in its burner section. A blower fan in the furnace then blows indoor air across the heat exchanger. This heats the air which is then blown through the duct system to the rooms where heat is required.

How A Heat Pump Works

Unlike a furnace, a heat pump doesn’t burn fuel to make heat. It simply uses electricity to move heat from one place to another. A heat pump is an energy efficient way to heat your home in the winter by capturing the heat that is always present in outside air and pumping it into your home.

In the summer time, a switch over valve reverses the process. It reverses the flow of refrigerant in order to pull warm air out of your home and transfer it outdoors.

Dual Fuel System

Since the air conditioner and heat pump are in the same unit, it is possible to also have an indoor furnace to use as a backup.

This backup can even be your present furnace. Though a heat pump is very efficient, its efficiency decreases at the colder temperatures. On these few days of very cold temperatures, you will be able to switch to the indoor gas or electric furnace.

Efficiency Ratings

Heating and cooling unit efficiency is rated by 3 primary methods, SEER, AFUE and HSPF. These allow you to compare the different products of different manufacturers. (All the following assumes no energy loss due to duct or other types of leakage)

SEER

Stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating and is used to rate the efficiency of an air conditioner. The higher the SEER, the more efficient the air conditioner. For instance going from a 7 SEER unit to a 14 SEER unit would reduce your cooling bill by 50%

AFUE

Stands for Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency. It is used in gas furnaces and is a measure of the efficiency of the gas furnace in converting fuel to energy. The higher the rating, the more efficient. As a rule of thumb, an 80 % efficient furnace, converts 80% of the natural gas to heat with the remaining 20% disposed of as combustion by products.

HSPF

Stands for Heating Seasonal Performance Factor. It is used as a measure of efficiency for heat pumps. The higher the number, the more efficient the heat pump.