{"id":2910,"date":"2024-07-22T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-22T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/?p=2910"},"modified":"2024-07-22T14:32:51","modified_gmt":"2024-07-22T18:32:51","slug":"what-maintenance-do-heat-pumps-need","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/heat-pumps\/what-maintenance-do-heat-pumps-need\/","title":{"rendered":"What Maintenance Do Heat Pumps Need?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"HVAC-technicians-working-on-an-outdoor-AC-unit\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Heat pumps are very similar to air conditioners in most ways. They operate on the same principle of absorbing heat in one location and moving it to another to be released. But there are some distinct differences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heat pumps and air conditioners do have some slightly different components and some slightly different maintenance needs. Read on for the details!<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Moving Heat<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This principle of moving heat is how the heat pump can warm your home so efficiently. By reversing the flow of refrigerant, it can either carry heat out of your home like an air conditioner or carry it into your home. This means it doesn\u2019t have to do the energy-intensive work of actually generating heat, like a furnace does. It also means it has a unique component to accomplish this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Reversing Valve<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This component uses a slider to control which openings the refrigerant can flow through, which determines which way it will move through the system. The slider moves thanks to pressure from a solenoid, an electromagnet that pushes the slider into the cooling position when it receives power and releases it to slide into the heating position when it stops receiving that charge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means that if something interrupts power to that slider\u2014a miscalibrated thermostat, a faulty wire, or a failed solenoid\u2014the heat pump will be stuck in heating mode. If this happens to you, get repairs right away! It\u2019s completely fixable. But this amazing reversing valve has another important impact on your heat pump\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Year-Round Operation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Because your heat pump can both cool and heat your home, it gets a lot more use than a simple air conditioner. In fact, depending on your needs and how well-insulated your home is, a heat pump could provide most or all of the heating you need, all winter long! That means it\u2019s getting a lot more wear and tear than an appliance that\u2019s only in use for one season each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More air passes through, causing more buildup of dust and mess. More grit works its way between components. More lubricant is worn away by more movement. More vibration over more time means more risk of screws loosening or components slipping out of position. More time spent turning on and off means more strain on the compressor. This means more maintenance is necessary!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An appliance that\u2019s only in use for one season only requires maintenance once a year. Generally, people have their heating system maintenance done in the early fall, before they need their heat in the cooling weather. And they have their AC maintenance done in the spring, before turning the air conditioning on for the summer. This ensures that each system is in top condition just when it\u2019s needed most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since your heat pump is providing both functions, and working all year round, it needs to be treated as though it is both systems. That means investing in spring maintenance before you use it for cooling your home, and fall maintenance before you use it for heating your home. But don\u2019t be too concerned about the exact timing: the most important thing is to get maintenance twice a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether you missed the springtime window and need service now, or you\u2019re planning ahead for fall, we\u2019d be delighted to help you with heat pump maintenance in Washington, DC<\/a>.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact us today<\/strong><\/a> to schedule an appointment or ask any questions you have about your heat pump.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Heat pumps and air conditioners do have some slightly different components and some slightly different maintenance needs. Read on for the details!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[110,83],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2910"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2910"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2910\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2914,"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2910\/revisions\/2914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2910"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2910"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.polarbearairconditioning.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2910"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}