Do Heat Pumps Cool as Well as Air Conditioners?
When it’s time for a new air conditioner, you might want to switch to a more energy-efficient form of cooling, like a heat pump.
Despite their name, heat pumps don’t just offer heating capabilities — they’re also an excellent option for cooling homes. But do heat pumps cool as well as air conditioners?
As Coral Springs’ professional heating maintenance team, we at BVS Home Experts understand how complicated and intimidating it can be to distinguish between the many different heating and cooling systems. Learn everything you need to go about heat pumps vs. air conditioners in this guide.
How Do Heat Pumps and Air Conditioners Work?
Heat pumps and air conditioners work similarly. After warm air enters the indoor unit, it passes over refrigerant-filled evaporator coils, which absorb heat from the air. This turns the refrigerant from a liquid into a hot, low-pressure gas that moves to the compressor in the unit outside to release heat from your home.
The result of this process is removing heat and humidity from your home while cool, dehumidified air makes its way through the ductwork and out into each room of your home through vents.
What Are the Differences Between a Heat Pump and an Air Conditioner?
Before answering the question, “Do heat pumps cool as well as air conditioners?” you must understand the differences between the two. When it comes to cooling your home, they function identically. Florida homeowners might even have a heat pump cooling their houses without realizing it! Although both ACs and heat pumps are popular in warmer states, they have distinguishing characteristics.
With standard air conditioners, all you get is a cooling unit. Heat pumps, on the other hand, can heat and cool your house. While it’s easy to consider Florida weather as perpetually hot and humid, temperatures still cool down quite a bit in the weeks and months after the holidays. During these days and nights, a heat pump’s warming capabilities can feel like a blessing.
Is One Better Than the Other for Cooling?
Heat pumps are often just as good, if not better, than standard air conditioners when it comes to cooling your home on hot days. Heat pumps are also effective at dehumidifying the air inside a building. This makes them a popular choice for homeowners who want the cooling power of a typical air conditioner while also enjoying warmth when temperatures dip.
What Are the Advantages of Using a Heat Pump Over an Air Conditioner?
Despite having much in common with air conditioners, heat pumps are often the preferred option for homeowners in areas with milder winters, thanks to several advantages. From adapting well to fluctuating temperatures to offering superior energy efficiency and overall sustainability, heat pumps offer much utility over traditional air conditioning units.
Heating and Cooling
A heat pump has far more utility than a regular air conditioner used on its own. Although you can get around this by pairing an AC with a separate heating system like a furnace, this option is far more costly — and requires separate maintenance.
Sustainability
Heat pumps are also more sustainable than air conditioners, thanks to the fact that they use existing heat from the air or ground to heat your home. This makes them more resilient and versatile than a lone air conditioner while being easier to service and maintain than a setup that incorporates a gas or electric furnace.
Heat pumps can transfer 300% more heat energy than the electrical energy they use, making them a terrific green choice.
Energy Efficiency
Where heat pumps truly shine is with regard to energy efficiency. This is partly thanks to the outdoor unit absorbing heat from outside to condition and producing either warm or cool air inside. This makes heat pumps an economical option for homeowners, especially compared to other systems like gas and electric furnaces. You can save on monthly energy bills, both during the hot season and cold season, with a heat pump.
Get a Heat Pump Installed Today With Lion Air Conditioning and Heating, LLC
Do heat pumps cool as well as air conditioners? This is one of the many questions we answer on a daily basis. At Lion Air Conditioning and Heating, LLC, we offer expert heat pump repair and AC maintenance throughout Coral Springs and the surrounding areas. Locally owned with over a decade of industry experience, we know the ins and outs of air conditioners, heat pumps, and everything in between.
Contact Lion Air Conditioning and Heating, LLC today at (754) 317-1404 to schedule an appointment with one of our licensed and trained professionals today!
