Heat pump in Delaware

[shaum76]

hello all:
I'm getting conflicting opinions on appropriateness of Heat Pump in Delaware.

I know clearly that its not a good idea for cold climes - lets say NY state, CT or north ...
but I gez DE is not as cold as those states

but what i'm hearing is Heat Pumps are best used in Virgina or South of it.
any further north the furnace is going to be running more often and the operating savings vs initial cost isn't going to be sufficient.

can someone point me to more info on how approp a heat Pump is for what kinds of temperatures and what is the web-site I can find how many days of what temp we have in the DE area?

thanks yall

[2story]

my father has a HP and lives in Dover Del.a bit south of you. He was dead set agianst it (oil heat from way back) but a friend of His from New Castle, has one and loves it, after four years and one of them VERY cold He is delighted with his HP. You may consider a gas furnace with a HP, otherwise known as dual fuel, if i went that way i would go 80% furnace to ofset the cost. MInd you both of the people discussed are older, they want HEAT when they adjust the thermostat, my parents biggest problem was learning not to set it back at night.

[shaum76]

I know heat pumps work in DE - but the question is do they run long enough in DE to offset the initial cost versus the higher electric bill (but lower gas bill)

its essentially a question about ROI - return on investment.
and how I would calculate it based on something other than anecdotal evidence.

[dash]

Try this http://www.hvacopcost.com

[2story]

the main reason he loves it is the cost compared to oil, you do the math.

[Edited by 2story on 10-25-2005 at 11:10 AM]

[docholiday]

Hmmm then why are there more Heat pumps than gas or oil furnaces sold in Canada?

Your south of the border advice is probably generated by someone who really doesnt understand how they work and is proven by the fact you cant make something work right, if you dont know how they work.

[shaum76]

this helps me greatly in making a decision...
according to my calcs with a 11SEER or 9.5HSPF unit I'd save about $200 a year. so the pay-off is about 4 years.

[docholiday]

yeah, and after 4 years you would be pocketing 200 a year.