With over thirty years of experience in furnace sales, installation, and repairs around Oregon, we’ve seen many new home heating technologies come and go. However, none seem to be revolutionizing the market quite like heat pumps. More and more residents of Salem and Keizer are looking into upgrades to heat pumps, and we don’t blame them. This latest form of home heating has many advantages, and not many disadvantages, compared to traditional furnaces.
Today, we wanted to briefly look at how heat pumps work and what makes them different from standard gas or electric furnaces.
Four Major Differences Between Heat Pumps and Furnaces
1. Method of operation
The genius of the heat pump is that it’s so simple. A heat pump is just an air conditioner – except that it’s reversible. The heat pump can, in effect, “air condition” the outside, which means pumping heat into your home as a side effect. This dual-way method of operation means that heat pumps can act as both heating and cooling units depending on the season!
2. Options for per-room heating
Some heat pumps are large central units, like your existing furnace, and utilize your ductwork to heat the entire house. However, there’s another alternative in heat pump technology – ductless systems, also called mini-splits. These are per room heaters and coolers connected via small pipes to a miniature outdoor unit. A set of mini-splits allows you to precisely control the climate in every room of your house, something that’s impossible with an old-style central furnace.
3. Energy efficiency
This is the most significant difference between heat pumps and traditional furnaces: heat pumps are much cheaper to run. We’re not exaggerating – you can expect to see your heating bills reduced by anywhere between 25% and 50% if you install a heat pump. They are the most efficient form of home heating yet invented and are likely to overtake the industry in short order.
4. Below-freezing performance
The only area where traditional furnaces still work better than heat pumps is extremely cold when it’s well below freezing. Heat pumps struggle in deep cold. They will still warm your house somewhat, but traditional furnaces are more effective – although you’ll be paying dearly for that extra heat due to how inefficient furnaces are.
The next time you’re calling for HVAC repair in Salem or Keizer, it might be time to think about upgrading your home climate control system. A new technology that’s quickly becoming standard and adopting it will bring you nothing but benefits for years to come.
This is the ductless HVAC, also known as ductless heat pumps or a “mini-split,” which offers you all-in-one heating and cooling in a small package. These units are inexpensive to install and will pay off through many years of use.
So, what makes ductless HVAC systems better than previous types of HVAC systems? Let’s take a look.
Four Reasons to Consider an Upgrade to Ductless Heat Pumps
Individual room climate control
Mini-split systems don’t rely on a central air conditioner or furnace. Instead, each room gets its own blower, connected by small pipes to an outside unit. This means you gain direct control over each room’s climate. Keep one room chilled without spending money cooling the entire house, or even shut down certain rooms entirely when you aren’t using them!
Fast and easy installation
Installing a ductless HVAC system is much easier and less invasive than other types of HVAC upgrades. All it requires are a few small holes drilled in the walls, and units can almost always get installed within just a few hours. This is particularly helpful for homes without central air or ductwork so that you can get modern climate control without extensive upgrades and alterations to your home.
Improved indoor air quality
Ductwork brings its problems when it comes to climate control. Ducts get dirty, are prone to mold and mildew, and they’re a haven for pests – pests that leave waste behind. Without regular cleaning, ducts can start spewing out pollutants and allergens into your home On the other hand, Mini-splits connect directly to the outside, making it much easier to keep out all the contaminants you don’t want to be breathing.
Lowered costs
Finally, here’s the big one: heat pumps are by far the most energy-efficient heating and cooling solution yet invented. A typical heat pump can cut anywhere from 25% to 50% off your monthly power bills compared to standard electric heaters and AC units. An upgrade to ductless HVAC units can easily pay for itself and keep paying off for many years to come.
As a leader in furnace sales and service around the Salem and Woodburn area, we spend a lot of time helping people keep their home furnaces working correctly.
With furnaces, preventative maintenance is always better than waiting for something serious to go wrong. If you detect any malfunction signs in your heater, it’s a good idea to call for heater repairs ASAP. The problem will only get more expensive to fix if you wait.
So how do you know if your furnace is starting to develop problems? Here are some of the big warning signs.
Four Signs of A Malfunctioning Furnace
1. Unusual smells
When you first fire up your furnace in the fall or winter, you’ll probably get some strange smells coming out of the ducts. Odd smells are expected; the furnace is burning off several months’ worth of dust and other accumulated material. However, the burning odors should disperse within an hour or two, and after that, your furnace should be odorless.
So, if you ever start smelling strange things from your ducts afterward, such as burning or metallic odors, it’s a sign that something has gone wrong.
2. Noises from the heater
Modern furnaces should also run very quietly; at most, you should hear a slight hum from the motor or maybe a quiet whoosh of the pilot light. Any loud or metallic sounds, such as banging or scraping, are a bad sign. If you start hearing such things, your best bet will be to shut down the heater and call immediately for furnace repairs.
3. Dirt and debris coming from the ducts
You should be getting relatively clean, pure air from the ducts whenever your furnace is running. If you ever notice dust or other particles coming out of the vents – such as dust building up beneath the vent – there’s something wrong. The filter on your furnace may not be working properly, or you may have dirty ducts in need of cleaning.
4. Not enough heat coming from the ducts
Finally, of course, there’s the question of whether your furnace is producing enough heat. If your ducts’ airflow doesn’t feel very hot, or if the flow of air is lower than normal, these are also signs that your furnace isn’t doing its job correctly.
Furnace Installation, Repairs, & Services in Woodburn & Salem
When you have furnace problems in the Salem or Woodburn area, Melton’s Heating & Air Conditioning is here to help. From furnace sales to service and maintenance, just contact our team when you need us.
