Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - A lot of heat pump systems have installed in Campbell River and Quadra Island homes recently. Several companies offer this service, but Aerotherm Solutions also made close to 30 installations on Cortes Island last year. Tyler Woodward, of Aerotherm Solutions, was on Cortes recently.
He explained that Aerotherm is a relatively small Campbell River HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) business that also installs furnaces, natural gas, custom sheet metal and duct work, ‘and do any type of service work on that type of stuff and commercial refrigeration as well.’
“Everything is handled in-house from the design to the installation and we've also got a sheet metal crew. We're involved in any sort of duct work, custom sheet metal, residential commercial, and some light industrial,” he explained.
“We've been installing heat pumps now in Campbell River, with this company, since 2016. In terms of new construction, the most common type of system that we're putting in would be a heat pump for the primary source of heat, but also the retrofit market is quite large as well. That's specifically folks that are looking to improve the efficiency of their home.”
As the summers continue to get warmer, there has also been more interest in air conditioning.
Woodward said heat pumps are catching on in the islands, as people move away from burning wood as their principal source of heat.
In terms of environmental impact, he said wood stoves ‘can be a pretty harsh contributor to the particulate matter in the air’ and in some neighbourhoods there are problems with smog.
It is difficult to compare the cost of wood heat versus heat pumps because some people cut their wood, but it can be expensive for those who purchase wood by the cord.
While electric heat is relatively clean, heat pumps produce anywhere from two to four times as much heat per kilowatt (depending on the technology). Woodward pointed out that this translates into a similar reduction in your heating bill.
Oil heat is very common in Campbell River, less frequent on Cortes, and roughly twice as expensive as a heat pump.
The price of propane fluctuates, but is similar to oil.
Natural gas is more efficient and comparable in price.
There is a significant capital investment in acquiring a heat pump system. In the podcast, Woodward explains that systems can cost anywhere from $4,000 to more than $10,000, depending on the size of the area to be heated. In time, homeowners will recoup this through reduced energy bills.
“If you're comparing it to an electric baseboard, depending on how much electricity you're consuming, you could see payback in as little as three or four years,” he said. “Typically a new system that's installed by a certified contractor, should have a warranty of around 10 years and, with proper maintenance, I would say 20 years would be a reasonable life expectancy.”
The federal and provincial governments are promoting heat pumps and offering rebates to reduce the cost.
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