Heat Pump Maintenance Tips to Ensure a Longer Life

A heat pump is a device that can warm a room by transferring heat from the outside to the room. Many heat pumps can also reverse the process. This means they cool the room by removing heat from the room and rejecting it outside. If the device can only cool the room, it is called an air conditioner.

As your heat pump works, it is normal for it to wear off over time. This gradual wear-off leads to aging, which can lead to an unavoidable replacement. Nonetheless, they are educated ways to slow down the aging process of your heat pump through proper maintenance. Our HVAC technicians have dished out top maintenance tips to keep your heat pump running for a longer period.

Let’s show them to you.

How Your Heat Pump Works

A quick digression here: Do you know why doctors know exactly how to stay healthy? Because they know how the body system works.

You can know how to keep your heat pump up and running without a fault for a long time by understanding how it works. Let’s explain it to you.

By nature, heat flows from hot to cold. And not from cold to hot. But your heat pump is there to thwart that natural phenomenon for your comfort.

The heat pump just like air conditioners operates with refrigerants. When your heat pump is in heating mode, it compresses the refrigerants at an outside temperature. This compression makes it hot. As the heat pump transfers outside air to your room, the air passes through the hot refrigerant and the heat will be transferred to the air. This causes hot air that will later be sent to your room. 

The refrigerant then decompresses (evaporates). This causes it to lose heat and return to being colder than the environment. Since heat will naturally move from hot to cold, the cold refrigerants will absorb hotter air from the outside, and the cycle repeats. 

Hidden Benefits In Proper Heat Pump Maintenance

Just as we benefit from our Heat Pump in numerous ways, our heat pump also benefits from proper maintenance habits. We will tell you ways your heat pump benefits (obvious and hidden) that you’ve probably hadn’t thought of. 

1. Longevity

The average lifespan of a heat pump ranges from 10 to 15 years. Two main factors that can tweak this range are how often you use your heat pump and whether it receives regular maintenance. The best way to show how keen you are in having a heat pump that will live long is by maintaining it properly and regularly.

2. Keeps the device at optimal efficiency

Regular maintenance prevents huge damage to major parts of your heat pump. When you maintain it regularly, you can foresee the demise of major components and avert it. With this, your unit will be in a good working condition almost all the time. This will ensure effectiveness and optimal efficiency. 

3. Lowered utility bill

The first suspect of an unusual hike in your utility bill is your heating or cooling unit. If you have one, then a sharp rise in your utility bill screams out a poorly maintained unit. According to energy.gov, the difference between the energy consumption of a well-maintained heat pump and a neglected one ranges from 10% to 25%. That’s a lot of money saved.

4. Cost-effective maintenance cost

The cost of prevention is better than the cost of the cure. According to HomeAdvisor, the national average cost for residential heat pump repair is $347, but can easily run to $1,250 or more. But it will cost you about $170 to $190 to get a heat pump expert to your home for servicing. This proves that preventive maintenance is cost-effective.

DIY Preventive Maintenance Tips

Now that you’ve seen the top benefits of regularly maintaining your heat pump, let’s show you some DIY preventive maintenance that doesn’t need the involvement of technicians. 

Case in point:

• Clean your air filters every 30 to 60 days. Blocked filters strain compressors and other components which will require them to do more work.
• Clean your outdoor unit often. It should always be free of leaves, dirt, debris, and fallen branches.
• During the winter, look out for blockage of the outdoor unit by snow. The heat pump needs maximum airflow to effectively function.
• Weed-eat all weeds and grass growing around your outdoor unit for about 18 inches apart. Those can prevent the free flow of air. 
• Clean the supply and return registers if they are dusty.
• Don’t use any sharp object to scrape ice off the coil. It can cause severe damage.
• Involve the technicians twice per year. Advisably before the winter and before the summer. 

Heat Pump Professional Maintenance Checklist

Although as the owner of the heat pump, you have a huge role to play in the regular and proper maintenance to ensure longevity, your role isn’t enough to sustain it. Scheduling an appointment with HVAC experts is always a good move. A move that will play a huge part in ensuring longevity. When the experts pay a visit, they perform the following tasks.

• Reduces the effect of friction that causes wear by properly lubricating all moving components.
• Check for cracks or leaks in the ducts. It can lead to energy waste.
• Test controls to verify proper startup and shutdown while listening for unusual or disturbing sounds.
• Check belts, pulleys, and other components for a shift in alignment. 
• Check the level of the refrigerant. And top it off if necessary.
• Inspect the electrical wiring and connections, and they tightly fit every connection to prevent an open circuit.
• Test and calibrate the thermometer.
• Ensure the thermostat is properly working.
• Inform you of any damaged or soon-to-damage component to avert a bigger damage. 

Key Takeaway

You spent a lot of money getting that heat pump. If it damages beyond repair, it’s a loss. You can prevent that by regularly and properly maintaining it. You play your own little share by performing the DIY tips. 

And then you let the technicians play the larger share by scheduling an appointment with them at least twice annually. Let’s play the larger part for you today. Here at Precision Air Solutions, we inspect HVAC units at affordable prices. Book an appointment with us today!