Maintaining a comfortable indoor temperature is a priority for homeowners all year long no matter where they live. In winter, you’re bound to be even more aware of how well your heating system is working, and what to replace it with should it give out on you and your Huntersville, NC home. When faced with the choice of replacing your heating systems, you have two options: a heat pump or a furnace. Both do a great job of heating your home but they come with their own advantages and disadvantages. Below, the Air Crafters Heating and Cooling experts will discuss the major differences between furnaces and heat pumps in hopes to help you figure out which is best for your Huntersville, NC home.
Heat Pumps
A heat pump does not require fuel to generate heat. In fact, heat pumps don’t create heat – they move it. Heat pumps take the idea that it is easier to move something rather than create it. In the winter time, heat pumps move warm air from outside into your Huntersville, NC home. A heat pump has various components that make the system work including and indoor air handler and an outdoor unit with a coil and a fan. Because a heat pump only moves heat from one place to another, the process can be reversed in the summer time to cool the inside of your home by removing the heat in your home to the outside.
Pros & Cons
Because heat pumps move heat, they can be used in reverse in the summer time. They are environmentally friendly and energy-efficient and generally cost less to operate in the winter time. However, heat pumps are less efficient in the colder climates when temperatures fall below freezing regularly. Since heat pumps are used year round, they require more maintenance and upkeep than furnaces and don’t have as long of a lifespan as furnaces do.
Furnaces
Furnaces take a different approach to warming your home by actually creating heat by burning fuel. There are four main components to a furnace: a burner, a blower, a heat exchanger, and a flue for the exhaust. The most common type of furnace is fueled by natural gas but reliable electric furnaces are also available. Furnaces burn fuel at a central unit and then blow warm air throughout your home through your ductwork.
Pros & Cons
Because furnaces create heat by burning fuel, they can heat your Huntersville, NC home really well. They are also not year round which means they typically have a longer lifespan than heat pumps. This also means that furnaces need less maintenance. Depending on the fuel you use and its local cost, furnaces can be more costly to run.
If you’re interested in learning more about some of the heating systems we carry and install here at Air Crafters Heating and Cooling, check out our products page https://www.theheatandairman.com/products. To learn more about our professional HVAC services and how we can help your Huntersville, NC home, call our team today!