Spokane WA Heat Pump Installation is a heat pump contractor providing furnace-to-heat-pump conversion for homeowners and property owners across Spokane County, WA and out to the Idaho state line. Every job starts from a load calculation rather than the size of whatever came out.
A furnace to heat pump conversion does not have to mean removing the furnace. In a dual fuel arrangement the furnace stays as the secondary heat source, a heat pump outdoor section and cased coil are added, and the control system switches between them based on outdoor temperature. The heat pump carries the load through the mild majority of a Spokane winter, and the furnace takes over in genuine cold. Setting the changeover point correctly is what makes this work, and it is a calculation rather than a default.
Above the changeover temperature the heat pump runs because it is cheaper per unit of heat. Below it the furnace takes over. Where exactly that crossover sits depends on your gas rate, your electricity rate and the heat pump's efficiency at that temperature, so it is calculated for your house rather than assumed.
Dual fuel is the most cost effective route for many Spokane homes with existing gas service, provided the details are right.
The furnace has to be worth keeping for this to make sense. A dual fuel conversion onto a furnace with a cracked heat exchanger or five years of life left is money spent on the wrong half of the system. We inspect the furnace as part of the assessment and tell you plainly whether the conversion is the right route or whether a full heat pump system with the furnace removed would serve you better.
Fit the coil, wire the changeover to whatever the control board defaults to, and let the furnace pick up far more of the winter than it needs to.
Calculate the economic balance point from your actual utility rates and the equipment's performance at that temperature, then set the changeover there.
There are two different balance points and they get confused constantly. The thermal balance point is the outdoor temperature at which the heat pump's output equals the building's heat loss, and it is a physics question. The economic balance point is the temperature at which running the heat pump costs the same per unit of heat as running the furnace, and it is an arithmetic question involving your gas rate, your electricity rate and the heat pump's coefficient of performance at that temperature.
The economic balance point is usually the higher of the two and it is the one that should set the changeover, because below it you are paying more for heat pump operation than for gas. In this area that number commonly lands between 25°F and 30°F, but it moves with utility rates and we recalculate it rather than repeating a figure from memory.
A dual fuel conversion costs less than a full system replacement because the furnace, ductwork and much of the electrical stay in place. The main additions are the outdoor unit, the cased coil, the line set and the control work.
Whether it saves you money depends on your gas and electricity rates, which is why we run that comparison with your actual bills rather than in general terms. In some situations the honest answer is that gas remains cheaper for most of the winter, and we will tell you that.
We inspect the existing furnace to establish whether it is worth building on, and check blower capacity and cabinet clearance.
Your actual gas and electricity rates and the proposed equipment's performance data set the economic changeover temperature.
The outdoor unit is set, the cased coil is fitted above the furnace, the line set is run and the control wiring is completed.
Changeover is set to the calculated temperature, simultaneous operation is locked out, and both modes are verified independently.
The conversion adds equipment around an existing furnace, so both the furnace area and a new outdoor location need preparing.
Balance point calculations rest on local design conditions. Our Spokane heat pump sizing and climate guide sets out the Climate Zone 5B temperature data and heating degree day figures the arithmetic uses. Read the guide.
Call for a load calculation and an itemised quote. You keep the numbers either way.
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