Need To Upgrade Your Heat Pump? Need-To-Know Terminology
It’s important to become familiar with certain terminology before you upgrade your heat pump so you can be an educated consumer. With knowledge of the following heat pump terms, you’ll be better able to make the right purchase, enjoy a unit that is installed correctly and boost your return on investment.
- Refrigerant: In cooling mode, heat pumps use refrigerant to absorb, transport and release heat from inside your home to the exterior. In heating mode, this process works in reverse.
- Reversing valve: This reverses the flow of refrigerant in the system, which allows heat pumps to work as both a heater and an air conditioner.
- Coil: Heat transfer takes place in this tubing. It may feature fins to increase the surface area and act as a more efficient heat exchanger.
- Compressor: Gas refrigerant molecules are squeezed together in the compressor, increasing its pressure and raising its temperature. A two-speed scroll compressor can operate on two speeds instead of one and operates more efficiently than a traditional piston compressor.
- Btu/hr: British thermal unit per hour, the measure of heating or cooling output. One Btu is the amount of energy required to change the temperature of one pound of water one degree.
- kW: Kilowatt, the unit electricity is measured in. This is the power source that heat pumps run off of.
- Ton: When you upgrade your heat pump, you may see its capacity written in tons. One ton is equal to 3.5 kW or 12,000 Btu/hr.
- SEER: Seasonal energy efficiency ratio, a measurement of the heat pump’s cooling efficiency. Look for a SEER rating of 14 or higher when you upgrade your heat pump to appreciate greater energy savings in the summer.
- HSPF: Heating seasonal performance factor, a measurement of the heat pump’s heating efficiency. Look for an HSPF rating of 9 or 10 for the greatest efficiency in the winter.
For more tips to help you upgrade your heat pump or for answers to other heating and cooling questions, please contact Sobieski Services.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Wilmington, Delaware and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC & plumbing systems).
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