Heat Pumps & Mini-Splits

3 parent questions ▼
5 parent reviews ▼

Parent Q&A

Replacing forced air gas furnace with heat pump? – Sep 11, 2021 – (4 responses below)
Experience with heat pump for heating & cooling – Oct 23, 2020 – (7 responses below)
Recommendations for high efficiency heat pump installation? – Oct 11, 2019 – (2 responses below)

  • Replacing forced air gas furnace with heat pump?

    – Sep 11, 2021
    (4 replies)

    There are a few older postings on this, but I wondered what the latest information might be.  We live in a 30 year old condo with a forced air gas furnace in the attic, and want to switch to a heat pump.  We would love advice as to what is involved (e.g., do we need an electrician involved to also run higher voltage in), and even better, who we might trust to do it for us.  We're trying to be more energy efficient and all that, our gas furnace is aging and replacing it with another gas furnace seems climate unfriendly.

    Thanks a lot!

    [moderator note] Here is a recent discussion about AC that recommended heat pumps: Seeking alternatives to installing central AC

    Sep 11, 2021
    RE: Replacing forced air gas furnace with heat pump? ()

    My family needed to replace our furnace and went with a heat pump because we expect within the lifetime of any furnace/heat pump, air conditioning would become more and more necessary due to climate change. A heat pump was cheaper than furnace+AC and is better for the environment (and our electric bills now are pretty similar to our electric+gas bills before; just be sure to let PG&E know you’ve switched to electric heat so they raise your baseline for Tier 1 electric usage). You likely will need an electrical upgrade (we didn’t because by chance we had an extra electric panel in our house that we weren’t using). We went with Lennox through Costco. Their price was a bit higher than other vendors we talked to, but we got a huge Costco credit as cash back, and their system was much bigger (other vendors quoted us for heat pumps for our whole house that are meant for just a single room, which honestly is probably sufficient in the Bay Area). In the end, I’m very happy with the decision because electrification is an important climate change mitigation, and now we have AC!

    RE: Replacing forced air gas furnace with heat pump? ()

    Hi Momima!  I work in the field of home efficiency and electrification and recommend checking out The Switch is On website (https://www.switchison.org/get-started) as a great resource to get started with this project -- you can look up contractors who are experienced with heat pumps and see the incentives that are available in your area.  We worked with Electrify My Home (https://www.electrifymyhome.com/) and are very happy with our system.

    RE: Replacing forced air gas furnace with heat pump? ()

    I switched from old gas space heating to heat pump (also replaced my water heaters and turned off the gas!!!)

    Be sure you get a company that has experience with heat pumps.  The system(s) need to be designed for YOUR home layout.  I ended up with two separate systems for my 3 floor hillside house; one compressor for a mini-split ducted system for the middle floor and a wall unit for the basement.  The other compressor connects with three wall units for the top floor.  It was not cheap, but the result has been GREAT-- excellent heating, and the pleasure of having air conditioning.  Also no more outrageous gas bills.  The heat pumps are so efficient that my electricity didn't go up much. (Not true for my electric vehicle...) I used A1 Guaranteed in Sonoma. 

    See 1 more responses »

  • Experience with heat pump for heating & cooling

    – Oct 23, 2020
    (7 replies)

    We are considering replacing our central gas furnace with a ducted mini-split heat pump and wanted to hear how others' experience with ducted heat pumps has gone.  Does it provide enough cooling on the occasional hot summer days?  Is it noticeably noisier than a gas furnace?  

    Oct 23, 2020
    RE: Experience with heat pump for heating & cooling ()

    We had a mini-split system in Brooklyn and it was excellent. Much quieter as the only fan that's on is the one that's in the room that needs the cooling. Our condenser unit was on the roof and we never heard it. Definitely provides enough cooling - though you need to have it sized for your building. I'd say it's far quieter than a gas furnace as you don't hear it click on, or the whurring of the wind through the ducts themselves.

    Which one were you considering specifically? Did you mean Ductless instead of Ducted?

    https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/the-best-ductless-mini-split-...

    RE: Experience with heat pump for heating & cooling ()

    We installed a ducted Fujitsu heat pump system in our house (1400 sq ft) last year and are very happy with it!  It is not noisier than a gas furnace: I believe the fan/blower system is just a standard fan system, no different from the one that would circulate air heated by a gas furnace fire.  The compressor outside is as loud as an air conditioner (because a heat pump space conditioning system is basically an air conditioner with a reversible valve, allowing it to both heat and cool).  The compressor is outside our kitchen window and I don't notice the noise unless I'm listening for it (it's only running sporadically anyway, just like an A/C).  It keeps our house very comfortable, and also feels good to know that no longer burning gas is the right decision for the climate and air quality in general.  We like being able to pre-cool/pre-heat our house at times of day when there's excess solar on the grid.  It's a great decision, especially if you were considering installing/replacing air conditioning anyway.  BayREN may be able to connect you with rebates depending on where you live.  Feel free to reach out to me directly if you have further specific questions!

    RE: Experience with heat pump for heating & cooling ()

    I have a similar question!  I have a bid for a Mitsubishi pump with ducts for heating and cooling for our downstairs and minisplits for our upstairs bedrooms but it is quite expensive.  The system also requires an electrical upgrade.  Does anyone have experience with this sort of heating and cooling system? Thanks!       

    See 4 more responses »

  • Recommendations for high efficiency heat pump installation?

    – Oct 11, 2019
    (2 replies)

    We need to replace our heating system and are looking for any recommendations for heating companies that install high efficiency heat pump systems.  If you have had one installed and are happy with the work and price, it would be wonderful to hear your experience (and the cost!). 

    Thank you!

    Oct 11, 2019
    RE: Recommendations for high efficiency heat pump installation? ()

    We just got a bunch of quotes and are currently installing a mini-split system with A1. Their proposal was the most cost competitive and they are very active in the decarbonization community. May want to contact the BayRen nonprofit as well for additional recommendations, they have been helpful.

    RE: Recommendations for high efficiency heat pump installation? ()

    Great that you are considering a heat pump!  I work in the field of building electrification (policy, not the technical aspects) and this transition is so important for our climate!  I am in the middle of having a ducted mini-split heat pump installed in my house.  Our system was sold to us by Larry Waters at A-1 Guaranteed and I found him very knowledgeable.  We also got a quote from Hassler but didn't like their proposal as much because they recommended individual heat pumps in many rooms, rather than a ducted system (which we prefer for aesthetic reasons).  If you already have heating duct work in your house (we don't) Hassler may also have a good idea for your house.  The quotes were comparable.  Unfortunately I can't report on the work because the install hasn't started yet! 

    You may know this, but after completing the project be sure to contact PG&E to get on their "all electric" rate (you can still have gas cooking/water heating to qualify).  This will increase your Tier 1 allotment and reduce system operating cost. 

    Good luck! 

Parent Reviews

RE: Any recommendation for HVAC INSTALLER? ()

We swapped out our ancient gas furnace for an electric ducted mini split system and got quotes from a few installers and Hassler was definitely the most expensive.  We went with Kevin Armstrong who is a solo practitioner (chis ompany name is Specialized Heating and air conditioning (510) 886-5853). Kevin was recommended by the minisplit distributor company who told us that Kevin is the guy they call when people's mini split systems are installed incorrectly and Kevin fixes them.  He did a great job, was inexpensive and when we had a problem several years later, he came over on a weekend and fixed it quickly. We didn't have heating ducts prior to installing the mini split, so Kevin did all that duct work.  Six years later we're totally happy with what he did.  (And he was probably 30% -40% less than Hassler).

RE: Any recommendation for HVAC INSTALLER? ()

Atlas heating and cooling installed our mini split system. Reliable, good communication, good work and follow up when we had a few minor issues while it was under warranty. System is working well. I think the price was fair, too.

RE: Seeking alternatives to installing central AC ()

I’m having a Mitsubishi mini-split system installed right now, for just the two upstairs bedrooms. Cheapest quote from reputable installer (Nahman) was $18k. Others ranged up to $22k. I’m having ducts installed in the ceiling (from the attic space), rather than those big wall units, which I hate. But price is not much different for either. Mini-splits do both heating and cooling, meaning I could get rid of the baseboard heaters in those rooms, which is also nice. 

RE: Seeking alternatives to installing central AC ()

We've been getting estimates for a heat pump to replace our gas furnace, which would also provide cooling for "free" (the heating process is just reversed).  The mini split is a heat pump for one room only - you see them in hotel rooms mounted under a window or high on the wall. They are getting more popular and easier to find. Most of the major plumbing and HVAC companies can give you an estimate to install a heat pump or mini split now. As renewable energy becomes cheaper and more available, electric heating is going to be a lot cleaner than gas, and some cities like Berkeley are starting to ban natural gas in new construction. So electric heat pumps are the way to go for the future.

The City of Berkeley recently co-hosted an online "Green House tour" of local homeowners who have installed various appliances that don't use natural gas, including heat pumps, induction cooking, clothes dryers, etc. It's really informative - there is a video of one family in Lafayette that installed mini-splits in every room along with lots of other eco features. In all the videos, the owners walk you through their house explaining what they did, and why, how much it cost, who their contractor was. There is a list of the houses here: https://www.eastbaygreenhome.com/sites  - click a house to see what brands and contractors they used. To view the videos of each house, go on youtube and search "east bay green home tour"

RE: Seeking alternatives to installing central AC ()

We live in a 1500 sf house and just got our entire HVAC system replaced with heat pump system that takes advantage of the mild climate here to provide heat and cooling without relying on gas (all electric). It cost $16k, including entirely replacing the duct system in the house. Let me know if you want the name of our contractor.