Cold climate mini-split heat pumps
* I live in northern New England and used to heat exclusively with wood in the winter time. Very cozy, but hard to maintain a consistent temp throughout the house. The new cold-climate models can operate at 100% capacity down to an ambient temp of -13F outdoors. One in each bedroom, the living area, and home office makes it easy to dial in the optimal temp for the space. No more loading the woodstove overnight when everyone is in a bedroom with the door closed!
For the summer, the heat pumps have replaced our terribly inefficient whole-house central AC. We have a PV solar electric system, so we can use the electricity we produce to run them, and once I started paying attention to energy use in our home it was clear that the old central AC had to go.
The modern mini-splits are pretty much maintenance-free, and are warrantied for 12 years. Best off all? The compressors are very quiet. You can have a normal conversation standing right next to them.
For the summer, the heat pumps have replaced our terribly inefficient whole-house central AC. We have a PV solar electric system, so we can use the electricity we produce to run them, and once I started paying attention to energy use in our home it was clear that the old central AC had to go.
The modern mini-splits are pretty much maintenance-free, and are warrantied for 12 years. Best off all? The compressors are very quiet. You can have a normal conversation standing right next to them.