Do heat pumps work in really hot weather?
Though more commonly associated with heating in the winter, heat pumps are an excellent cooling option in the summer. Even in humid climates like ours, heat pumps perform well and can keep your home comfortable all season long.
Heat pumps do not operate as efficiently when temperatures drop to between 25 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit for most systems. A heat pump works best when the temperature is above 40. Once outdoor temperatures drop to 40 degrees, heat pumps start losing efficiency, and they consume more energy to do their jobs.
High temperature heat pumps can achieve operating temperatures of between 60-80°C, the same high temperatures usually associated with boilers. You may not need to install new insulation or radiators to have a high temperature heat pump installed, however, they don't tend to have the same efficiency as boilers.
In the summer months, a heat pump works just like a standard air conditioner would. Standard air conditioners, use a refrigerant to absorb unwanted heat in your home and transfer it to the air outside. This happens by changing the pressure of the refrigerant fluid.
Our answer? It all depends on the outside temperature. If it's really cold or really hot (below 30° F and above 100° F), there is likely nothing wrong with your heat pump.
Air source heat pumps can experience issues such as icing in cold temperatures, which can ultimately damage the system. Although modern heat pumps do often have automatic defrosting. Their efficiency will also be lower at very cold temperatures, and use more electricity during those cold days.
The ideal heat pump effective operating temperature for cooling is 20 degrees lower than the outdoor temperature. To maximize heat pump cooling efficiency in the summer, you should never set your heat pump temperature higher than 80 degrees Fahrenheit, which is sufficient on the hottest days of 100-degree weather.
HT heat pumps have been designed to operate at 80 degrees and so can heat standard radiators. Other advanced heat pumps operate up to 65 degrees and are also good candidates for existing heating systems.
One of the most popular questions we hear is, “do heat pumps use a lot of electricity?” We are delighted to answer that they do not. Compared to more traditional methods of heating, ductless heat pumps are much more energy-efficient, which means they have less impact on your utility bills.
Energy Efficiency
From a strictly scientific basis, heat pumps are technically more energy efficient in that they can transfer more energy than they use. By contrast, a high efficiency natural gas furnace like the Carrier Infinity 98 with Greenspeed® Intelligence can provide up to 98.5% efficiency (AFUE).
Should I leave my heat pump on all the time?
While heat pumps are the most cost effective way to use electricity to heat your home during the cooler months, leaving them running day and night is not economically efficient. According to Energywise, you should switch off your heat pump when you don't need it. This is to avoid excessive energy waste.
Generally speaking, a heat pump will produce air that is about 55 degrees warmer than the outside air. This isn't a problem when it's 55 degrees outside—your system will expel air that's a toasty warm 110 degrees or so.
Most air conditioning systems are designed to function with outside temperatures of 100 degrees or less. When temperatures outside become higher than 100 degrees Fahrenheit, the air conditioning system can consume more energy and begin to malfunction or fail.
No, you don't want to shut down your heat pump for the summer—because the heat pump is also your air conditioner. When the warm weather starts, you'll simply switch the heat pump into cooling mode and it will continue to work like it always does, except now it's moving heat out of your house rather than inside it.
Heat Pumps are Ideal for Las Vegas' Climate
Not only does this make heat pump repair and maintenance more convenient, but they can even be more efficient—especially in winter.
Heat pumps work especially well in areas like High Desert where winter temperatures are not below -10F (-23C).