What is heat pump heating?

Efficiency Maine is now offering $500 rebates through the Home Energy Savings Program on the installation of eligible high efficiency ductless heat pumps. Click here for Eligibility Criteria and Units. Word is spreading quickly about how this exciting new technology is able to extract heat from outdoor air (even when it is very cold) and deliver heat energy into homes. There are over 200 registered contractors actively installing units around the state who are familiar with the highest performing models as well as our rebate process. Heat pumps can also be part of larger energy upgrades that qualify for $1, 500 in incentives.

Click on the video below to see a Ductless Heat Pump Case Study in Presque Isle:

Taking Action

1. Get incentives and financing for energy upgrades – Click here to find out about loans and incentives for projects that include energy assessments, air sealing, insulation, heat pumps and more.

Find more information about this exciting technology below:

Long used for cooling in warm climates, heat pumps are now one of the fastest growing technologies for ultra-efficient heating in cold climates. Rather than generate heat from combustion or electric resistance, heat pumps extract heat from outside air or the ground and deliver it indoors as needed. This process is a more cost-effective way to heat than most conventional systems. In the summer, heat pumps can reverse and work as air conditioners, cooling indoors and rejecting heat outside.

Watch this video to learn more about heat pumps.

Heat pumps generally fall into two categories:

1. Air-source heat pumps draw heat from an outdoor unit and deliver it indoors. In the summer, they reverse and act as high-efficiency air conditioners.
   A. Ductless heat pumps have one outdoor unit connected to one or more indoor units with small copper lines. These are the most efficient air-source systems and are often installed in homes and offices to supplement existing systems, usually in the most frequently used rooms like family rooms or bedrooms. Over the course of a typical Maine winter, these units can deliver more than three units of heat for every unit of electricity used.
   B. Ducted heat pumps have an outdoor unit connected to a building’s ductwork. Like ductless heat pumps, ducted heat pumps can both heat and cool buildings.
2. Ground-source heat pumps or “geothermal” heat pumps draw heat from the soil or groundwater and transfer it to a ducted air distribution system or radiators. Ground-source heat pumps are typically more efficient and more expensive than air-source heat pumps.

Financial Example

$900/yr savings