When the hot summer weather comes back around, many of us rely on a home air conditioning system to stay comfortable. When investing in a new air conditioning system for your home, you have two main options. These include a traditional central air conditioning system and a heat pump. We’re going to look at these two options below and help you to determine which one is the best choice for your household.
What Is Central Air Conditioning?
Central air conditioning works thanks to three different components. These include an indoor air handler unit, refrigerant lines, and an outdoor condenser unit. Air gets pulled in through the indoor air handler unit and crosses over an evaporator coil that is filled with refrigerant. The heat from the air naturally gravitates into low-pressure refrigerant. This refrigerant is then pumped outside to the outdoor compressor unit through the compressor pump.
At the outdoor unit, low pressure outdoor air is blown over a condenser coil filled with the hot refrigerant. Heat will move out of the refrigerant and into the air outside. This process happens repeatedly until your home gets to your desired temperature setting. A central air conditioning system relies on ductwork to deliver cold air throughout your home and pull in stale warm air to be treated.
What Is a Heat Pump?
A heat pump works similarly as a central air conditioning system does. It’s important to note that a heat pump can operate using traditional ductwork like a central air conditioning system or it can use a ductless mini-split system. Instead of having one indoor air handler unit, the ductless mini-split system has multiple indoor air handler units that work to deliver cold air throughout each individual room of the home.
Another major note that’s important to understand when it comes to a heat pump is that it can also provide adequate heating for your home. This is a major advantage over a traditional central air conditioning system, which can only provide household cooling. With a heat pump, you don’t need to have an additional heating system, like a furnace or boiler. It’s vital to note that traditionally heat pumps became less efficient when temperatures dropped below freezing. However, newer heat pumps can continue to provide efficient heating down to -20 degrees Fahrenheit.
Operating Efficiency
In pretty much all cases, central air conditioning systems are going to function at a similar efficiency level as a heat pump. The main contrasting situation is when you’re using a ductless mini-split system. Because there are multiple indoor air handler units, they operate more efficiently than using ductwork because they don’t have any gaps or leaks where treated air can escape.
It’s important to know that the overall SEER rating that the heat pump or central air conditioning system has is going to determine its operating efficiency. Both central air conditioning systems and heat pumps are available with similar SEER ratings.
Up-Front Cost
One of the biggest areas where these systems differ is their up-front price. If you already have ductwork installed in your home, a central air conditioning system installation is going to be cheaper to purchase than a heat pump. It’s important to keep in mind that a heat pump functions as both a heating and cooling system. When you purchase a central air conditioning system, you only get cooling. You have to go out and purchase another system to obtain heating for your home.
One of the bigger advantages of purchasing a heat pump over a central air conditioning system is that you may be eligible to receive tax incentives and rebates. Under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, homeowners who purchase a heat pump can recoup up to $3,200 on the cost of their new HVAC system. This is given in the form of a tax incentive where the funds can be used to offset your tax bill for the year. Many homeowners will also find that their local government, state government, and local utility companies will offer further incentives that can help offset some of the up-front cost of a new heat pump.
Expert Heat Pump Service
Putnam Mechanical offers expert heat pump service for the Mooresville, NC area. We can assist with all your heating, air conditioning services, and preventative maintenance needs. Simply call our office staff at Putnam Mechanical today to book a service consultation with one of our helpful HVAC technicians.
