Heat Pump Repair and Service
Heat Pumps perform two functions to provide comfort all year.
In the spring and summer heat pumps act as an air conditioner to keep your home cool. While, in the fall and winter they act as the furnace to keep your home warm and cozy. This dual purpose adds some complexity to diagnosing and repairing heat pumps. All-Seasons Comfort Heating and Air Conditioning are experts and will get your problem solved promptly, reliably at a price that is easy on your wallet.
Heat pumps provide a gentler heat than a gas furnace so when it’s very cold it might need to use auxiliary heat strips to give it a little boost. You might be wondering how a heat pump can make your house cool and hot? Great question. Heat pumps have a special valve system that allows the refrigerant to reverse direction for heating.
Here’s a brief explanation of the differences between the cooling cycle and heating cycle of a heat pump.
Cooling mode – When the heat pump is in cooling mode the reversing valve is activated and the refrigerant collects heat from the evaporator coil in the air handler in the house. The refrigerant moves to the outside condenser and releases the heat it collected to the open air. The refrigerant is able to collect and release heat because of pressure differences in the evaporator and condenser. To visualize the refrigerant flow in this example it might be helpful to think of the refrigerant moving through the system in a clockwise direction.
Heating mode – When the heat pump is in heating mode the reversing valve is not activated. This means the refrigerant is now flowing in the opposite direction, counterclockwise, compared to the cooling mode. Therefore, the refrigerant now collects heat from the outside condenser coil. The refrigerant moves to the inside evaporator in the air handler and releases the heat it collected to the home. Again, the refrigerant is able to collect and release heat because of pressure differences in the evaporator and condenser.
From a service and repair standpoint there a few differences between air conditioners and heat pumps. The reversing valve operation, the defrost cycle in heat mode and defrost control-board.
How long should a heat pump last? — No one can say for sure but most manufacturers guarantee them for ten years so it’s a safe bet that they should last at least a few years longer than the guarantee. Regular maintenance can help extend the life of your heat pump. You would expect your car to last longer with regular maintenance and the same is true with your air conditioning system. All-Seasons Comfort offers annual preventative maintenance visits that provide a complete review of your cooling and heating system. During these visits we routinely fine issues that we are able to correct before they become problems and permanently damage your heating and air system.
Here's what Catherine Levine said about All-Seasons Comfort
Heating and Air Conditioning
Can’t say enough nice things about service and technician. It was 91 degrees at 6Pm and my thermostat read 86 inside. It was working at noon. He came right over and replaced transformer and put in Freon. Whoopee it’s fixed. Reasonable and personable.