Once you've decided to install a pump, you need to decide which one best suits your needs. Here are the most common types of home heat pumps and their pros and cons.
Air-source pumps work by bringing air from outside through refrigerant-filled coils to heat it, then distributing the heat throughout your home. Although this type of heat pump is the most affordable in terms of installation cost, in areas where there are extremes of temperature, you would need a backup heating or cooling system, which would entail additional expense. Maintenance costs may also be high, since the system runs during both the summer and winter months, resulting in more wear and tear of the system's components.
Ground-source, or geothermal home pumps, gets its heat from the ground or an underground water supply. The major advantage of this system is its energy-efficiency; it is estimated that they can reduce electricity consumption by 44% compared with air-source pumps and 72% compared with air conditioners and electric resistance heating. On the other hand, initial installation cost of this type of heat pump is several times higher compared with air-source systems, but this would be offset by energy savings over the next five to ten years of use.
Finally, absorption or gas pumps are powered by natural gas or other sources such as solar power and propane; although mainly used in commercial and industrial establishments, they have also become commercially available for larger residential homes. Its major advantage is that it is more eco-friendly, since it doesn't use ozone-depleting refrigerants but rather ammonia as the medium of heat transfer. Its biggest drawback is that it is more expensive to operate due to the high cost of natural gas.
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