When (And Why) Heat Pumps Suck

[rangerrebew]

When (And Why) Heat Pumps Suck
5 hours ago 
By Ron Barmby

When you need heat pumps the most, they pump heat the least.

This is according to an unbreakable law of physics that applies to the entire universe without exception, even black holes, and especially to heat pumps.

Heat pump promoters who claim otherwise must have defeated the second law of thermodynamics, which would theoretically also allow them to make time run backward.

In addition to denunciation by physics, the cost of operating heat pumps is often very high compared to natural gas-fired heating.

Heat pumps are often accurately described as an air conditioner in reverse. To understand how a heat pump works, it helps to know how an air conditioner works.

https://wattsupwiththat.com/2024/02/20/when-and-why-heat-pumps-suck/

[massadvj]

I have a heat pump here in Texas, and so long as the weather is mild it is fine. But if it gets below 40 degrees or so, I have to use the wood stove and space heaters to keep things cozy.

[Cyber Liberty]

Heat pumps work fine here, but it's a special case.  Temperatures vary between 40 and 125.  Yes, the A/C does cool the Castle when it's 125....

Up in the mountains of 4 Corners, not so good in the Winter.

[Bigun]

Never owned one and never will.

[mountaineer]

We opted for a geothermal heat pump system when we built this house in 2009. At the time, it looked like the price of natural gas was going to skyrocket. As it turns out, it hasn't been until the past year or so that gas bills really went up significantly (we use it only for the water heater and gas range).

It's great in summer for air conditioning. In winter, it heats well for the first few months, but when the weather becomes very cold, the pump can't draw heat from the ground as effectively. If we were a bit farther south, it probably would be fine. Thankfully, we do have a wood-burning stove for when it's really cold.