Going To A Heat-Pump System: Weigh The HSPF Ratings
Making the switch to a heat pump system can lead to significant savings on your home heating and cooling bills. Besides having only one system to handle your home’s comfort needs year-round, heat pumps can be very efficient, saving you money on your utilities every month. Some heat pumps do a better job of saving energy than others, so you will want to weigh the efficiency ratings of different models before choosing a system.
Your biggest opportunity for savings from a heat pump comes during the winter, when the system is in heating mode. And the most common, practical measure of heating efficiency for heat pumps is the heating seasonal performance factor, or HSPF.
HSPF is akin to the miles per gallon ratings on cars; it tells you how much you can get from each unit of fuel. HSPF tells you how many BTUs, or British thermal units, of heat are provided for every watt-hour of electricity consumed.
Standard heat pumps have HSPF ratings of about 7.7, meaning they warm the house by 7.7 BTUs for each watt of electricity consumed. Some high-efficiency models, however, have HSPF ratings of 9 or 10, meaning they can save you about 20 percent on your heating bills compared to a standard model.
Some heat pump systems, including geothermal versions, use another measurement of efficiency: coefficient of performance, or COP. You can still compare such heat pumps, and figure out which ones are more efficient, by using some simple math:
- Multiply the COP number by 3.41 to get the equivalent HSPF rating, or
- Multiply the HSPF number by 0.293 to get the COP rating.
At Sobieski Services, we are the heat pump experts for Delaware and the surrounding areas. We can help you determine which heating and cooling system will work best for your home. Contact us today with any questions; we would be happy to help.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
Sobieski serves Wilmington, Delaware and the surrounding areas. Visit our website to see our special offers and get started today!
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