Heat Pumps / Air Conditioning

Is there a difference?

YES, so an air conditioner can only cool whereas a heat pump can both heat and cool.
That’s not to say that heat pumps are bad, because if you live in sunny QLD, you may actually just want cooling and no heater. If that’s the case an air conditioner is right for you.

However, A heat pump will outperform an air conditioner in efficiency when it comes to cooling. Heat pumps use five times less energy than air conditioners. When a heat pump is in heat mode and has an electric heater kick on, which can increase the energy usage.

Simply put, a heat pump is a device that uses a small amount of energy to move heat from one location to another. Not too difficult, right? Heat pumps are typically used to pull heat out of the air or ground to heat a home or office building, but they can be reversed to cool a building. In a way, if you know how an air conditioner works, then you already know a lot about how a heat pump works. This is because heat pumps and air conditioners operate in very similar ways.

What are the main reasons someone wants a heat pump or air conditioner?
It’s comfort isn’t it, you want to be able to set the temperature of the room to what you desire.
You want to be able to be in control.

Another great reason to go for a HVAC (Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) is that it’s much more efficient. In comparison to traditional heating and cooling methods. According to the Department of Energy, some homeowners can save upwards of $1000 per year by switching to a heat pump.

Other factors that can affect the efficiency could be:
The size of your home
Your local climate
How energy efficient your home is
How you currently heat your home