Every homeowner should know how to distinguish between a heat pump and an air conditioner. Although both appliances generally help improve the indoor air quality of your home, they have certain features that separate one from the other.
For instance, an air conditioner can only remove warm air from your home and replace it with cold air. Meanwhile, a heat pump can both cool and heat your home.
Knowing these slight differences can help you decide which heating or cooling system is appropriate for you. This article discusses the difference between heat pumps and air conditioners.
What is a Heat Pump?
Heat pumps are commonly used in moderate climates, where the weather doesn’t get too hot or too cold. It has heating and cooling modes, meaning you get two appliances in one when you buy a heat pump.
This HVAC system can warm your home by sucking in hot outside air and redirecting it into your house. It can also cool your home by reversing the flow, whisking the warm indoor air outside and the cold outside air inside.
A heat pump typically has an outdoor and indoor unit. These two units help heat pumps transport warm and cold air in and out of your home.
What is an Air Conditioner?
Air conditioners cool your home by removing unwanted heat from its surroundings. It sucks in the warm air from your house and sends it through a condenser with a cooling liquid called a refrigerant.
The refrigerant starts the cooling process, changing the temperature of the air before sending it back into your house.
As a result, you can enjoy cooler temperatures and a more comfortable home atmosphere.
Most homes with AC systems typically also have a gas furnace. This is because air conditioning systems can’t create hot air in case outdoor temperatures drop.
A natural gas furnace can help heat your home during severe or mild winters.
Heat Pumps vs. Air Conditioners
Modern heat pumps and air conditioners are functionally the same in terms of cooling.
Both heat pumps and air conditioners can extract heat from inside your home and replace it with cooler, more comfortable air.
However, as mentioned earlier, an air conditioning system can only cool a room. It can’t provide efficient heating, unlike a heat pump.
Besides this, other differences set a heat pump vs air conditioner apart.
Let’s compare both appliances based on their costs, heating or cooling efficiency, space, maintenance, and longevity.
Costs
When choosing an appropriate cooling system, the price typically plays a huge factor in the decision-making process. Buying HVAC equipment is one of the biggest investments a homeowner can make.
Choosing the right cooling solution will save you hundreds, even thousands, of dollars.
Installation
Installing a heat pump system in your home is often more expensive than an air conditioning system. Depending on the type and size of your prospective heat pump, you can expect to pay anywhere between $4,000 to $10,000.
The costs for installing an air conditioner are much lower, ranging between $3,000 and $7,000—depending on the type and size of the air conditioner.
Energy Costs
Heat pumps are generally more energy efficient compared to air conditioners. It may cost more to buy and install; however, research shows that it can save homeowners as much as $670 annually.
A heat pump might be a better choice if you’re looking for more energy-efficient heating and cooling for your home.
Efficient Heating/Cooling
A heat pump and an air conditioner tread on equal ground in terms of cooling functionalities. Both are effective cooling equipment and can stave off the scorching summer heat. Nevertheless, there are some things that heat pump systems can do that air conditioners can’t.
As mentioned earlier, a heat pump has heating and cooling modes. While heat pumps perform relatively well in mild climates, they tend to provide heat less efficiently when temperatures drop below freezing.
In this case, having a furnace to provide supplemental heat in your home is ideal.
Heat Pump System vs Furnace
Heat pumps are the ideal choice if we judge either based on energy efficiency. Not only does it use a greener energy source, but it also requires far less energy to transport heat from one location to another.
Heat pumps prove to be the more energy-efficient choice for those who live in mild climates. However, if you reside somewhere where the weather can get pretty intense, a heat pump may struggle to maintain energy efficiency in your home.
A furnace has a higher seasonal energy efficiency ratio compared to a heat pump. This makes it a more flexible choice if you live somewhere climate can change drastically and suddenly.
Space
Most air conditioning systems require ductwork to function optimally. Traditional homes may not accommodate this type of system, making air conditioners an inappropriate choice.
Heat pumps don’t require any ductwork and can be placed in any type of home. Nevertheless, it can take up much more space than an air conditioner.
As mentioned, a heat pump has an outdoor and indoor unit. The outdoor unit will need at least 24 inches of safety clearance. The indoor air handler will also need a clearance of at least the same distance to avoid accidents.
If you have more space to work with, a heat pump would be a splendid HVAC system for your home. It’ll take up less space and would be much easier to install.
On the other hand, a mini split-type air conditioner should be a great HVAC system for you if you have a smaller space.
Maintenance
Like all appliances, heat pumps and air conditioners require regular maintenance to preserve their parts and functionalities.
Heat Pumps
Generally, you want your heat pump checked at least once a year by an HVAC professional. If you use your heat pump year-round, twice a year is a good frequency for maintenance.
Getting a professional to conduct maintenance on your heat pump is essential to avoid errors in the process. However, homeowners can perform a couple of DIY maintenance tasks, such as:
- Removing debris around the outdoor heat pump unit
- Cleaning or changing the heat pump filters
- Cleaning outdoor coils
- Clearing ice or snow from the heat pump
Air Conditioner
Air conditioners need to be checked twice a year, during spring and fall, to ensure all the parts are functioning as needed. Once again, it’s recommended that you hire a professional to do the maintenance work for you. However, there are some things that you can do on your own:
- Replace the air filters in the air conditioning system every month
- Inspect the drain pan and drain lines for leaks, mold, and debris
- Check for loose controls or cracked electrical wirings
- Clean dirty evaporator coils
Longevity
When choosing between a heat pump vs air conditioner, you should consider the longevity of the system as well. It’s not enough to choose an energy-efficient model only to lose it as soon as the appliance reaches a certain age.
Usage, maintenance, AC repairs, and other variables can influence an appliance’s longevity. Generally, air conditioners tend to last longer than most heat pumps.
Heat pumps are used to both cool and heat a home. So, they may be in use more often than air conditioners. As a result, heat pumps typically only last 10 to 15 years in severe climates.
An air conditioner serves a single purpose, and that’s to cool your home. During the winter, an air conditioner would have all the time to rest from its cooling responsibilities. Thus, an air conditioner typically has a lifespan of 15 to 20 years.
Expert and Professional HVAC Maintenance and Repairs
Whether replacing your heat pump with an air conditioning system or vice versa, a few things you need to consider beforehand are maintenance and repairs. Although a heat pump and an air conditioner generally share the same functions, they also have distinct differences. As such, an air conditioning unit and a heat pump require different maintenance and repair services.
A proper evaluation of your home’s heating and cooling requirements is necessary to preserve your heat pump system or air conditioning unit. A trained and skilled HVAC professional can help you determine your ideal cooling and heating system.
Contact BelRed
Our BelRed experts have been trained to provide the highest-quality heating and cooling solutions to Mukilteo, WA, residents and its surrounding areas. You’ll find our technicians extremely helpful in your search for the appropriate HVAC systems for your properties. We also offer services that range from HVAC installation to furnace maintenance.
We look forward to and encourage you to contact us with any questions or feedback you have for our company. As a leading provider of professional HVAC services in WA, we continuously strive to improve our services to meet our clients’ growing and changing demands.
call (855) 345-6161
Contact us today for more details about our company and services.
