more heat pump questions

[Thrift Store Scott]

mrbigstuff wrote:
Neighbor just had one installed two years ago. His installer has returned about a half dozen times to fix or tweak things on the system but it's been good for the most recent six months or so. The big but is that he also has to maintain his oil fired boiler because the heat pump doesn't keep it warm enough on very cold days. So, if you're good with two systems it might work for you. Me, I think the retrofit is hideous (and problematic) on our wood frame century plus old houses in this neighborhood, so I'm waiting on PV at some point and maybe a geothermal water system.

If I were to build a new house, I'd install some sort of heat pump for sure.

That's been the main complaint against heat pumps I've heard even down here in the warm & sunny South- They don't do a very good job of heating on the coldest days, and most people wind up using some sort of supplemental heat (fireplace, wood stove, space heater, kerosene heater, etc.) in addition to the heat pump to stay comfortable.