Heat Pumps Specials

Envirotemp is offering a 10% discount on all Energy Star qualified heat pump systems we install throughout the month of May, including both central air and ductless mini-split systems. This discount is on the full price of the installed system and is in addition to the rebates available from LiveSmart BC (up to $1500).

Energy efficient air-source heat pumps are a year-round solution, providing cooling as well as heating. Just in time for summer!

Please reference this offer when you request your free estimate.

Home Heating System Calculator

There is a useful new calculator on Natural Resources Canada's website that allows Canadian homeowners to compare the costs of heating their home with their existing system vs. a new system, and to compare different new heating system options. The Home Heating System Cost Calculator factors in cost of fuel source, AFUE of the equipment, type and age of housing, and average annual heating requirements by location.

According to this convenient tool, in a newer (less than 22 years old) detached home located on Vancouver Island, replacing a standard efficiency oil furnace or boiler with an air-source heat pump could potentially save the homeowner more than $1000 annually in heating costs. In an older home with an old inefficient oil furnace, installing a new heat pump system may garner annual energy savings of over $2,300. Replacing electric baseboard heat with a heat pump system in a newer detached home could reduce hydro bills by over $900 per year.

Our moderate climate on Vancouver Island is ideal for air-source heat pumps, allowing homeowners to enjoy the benefits of the energy-efficient heat pump without the substantial cost of installing a geothermal loop. And with the new inverter technology now available, air-source heat pumps can perform effectively at much lower outdoor temperatures, reducing the need for an auxiliary heat source during cold weather. Given the relatively high and increasing oil and gas prices on Vancouver Island, air-source heat pumps are now more than ever the best choice for heating your home efficiently and cost-effectively.

Contact Envirotemp today to get a free estimate on replacing your inefficient fossil fuel or electric resistance heating system with a new energy saving heat pump system.

Innovation in heat pump technology

Inverter heat pumps have a variable-speed compressor that adjusts with ambient air temperature and heating or cooling loads. This eliminates energy losses associated with frequent stopping and starting of the refrigerant cycle, as in standard compressors. The latest inverter heat pumps have a Coefficient of Performance (COP) of up to 5, meaning they produce five times the heat energy than the electricity consumed. Inverter systems are 30 to 50 percent more efficient than conventional heat pump systems, and can operate effectively at colder outdoor temperatures, down to -20 celsius. Inverter technology offers the added benefits of quieter operation as well as reducing wear and tear on the compressor.



Inverter-driven heat pumps are also branching out in flexibility of application. According to Hoyt Corbett, a hydronic product inventor and developer:  "Previous air-to-water reverse cycle chillers and heat pumps did not feature variable speeds, were not packaged as well integrated units for heating, cooling and domestic hot water with solar thermal options. These models were less efficient and often noisy. That is now changing with the introduction into North America of a sophisticated new generation of air-to-water heat pumps based on variable speed inverter technology.... Most of these units will come packaged to do both heating and cooling, use a strategy to make or at least to preheat domestic water, and tie in to solar thermal systems. Heated water is made by means of a refrigerant-to-water heat exchanger."

These heat pump systems are well-established in Europe and Asia, but are relatively new in North American markets. Therefore testing standards have not yet been developed to prove their performance and government-funded energy rebate programs do not yet support these efficient products. However, Corbett predicts that "the combination of efficiency, a low carbon footprint, the ability to provide heating, cooling and domestic hot water with a solar thermal option means these new air- to-water heat pumps should generate a big growth in hydronics." Daikin Altherma is one such ground-breaking air-to-water heat pump that can connect to in-floor heating, air handlers, or low temp radiators, and can be configured to provide space heating and cooling as well as domestic hot water with optional solar heat kit. This case study of an ultra eco-friendly Portland, OR residence profiles the first application of a Daikin Altherma system in North America.