Heat Pumps
Choosing The Right Heat Pump Based On Cost Savings
Find out which three things you need to look for when choosing a heat pump for your home based on cost savings.
It's Hurricane Season in Nova Scotia and with the threat of Hurricane Fiona passing through this weekend, we're all preparing for one thing, a power outage
(Image Source: CBC News)
It's Hurricane Season here in Nova Scotia and with the threat of Hurricane Fiona passing through this upcoming weekend, we are all preparing for one thing, a power outage!
Buying basic supplies, fuel, groceries and making sure you have a back up heating source because of course, when the power goes out, so does your heat pump.
But what do you do to prepare for when the power comes back on? Can you just fire your heat pump right back up without missing a beat? The short answer is “no.”
If the heat pump loses power for more than 30 minutes, the refrigerant can get too cold to flow properly, so turning it right back on can cause the whole thing to conk right out. Instead, do the following:
- Make sure the heat pump is off. You can do this during the power outage.
- Once power comes back on, turn the heat pump to the “Emergency Heat” setting. This will allow the compressor to warm up slowly and get the refrigerant warm enough to start flowing freely again.
- Wait. The time you need to wait varies depending on the size and manufacturer of your heat pump, so refer to the manual. In general, you should wait at least 6 hours.
After this process, your heat pump should be ready to resume normal operation without issue.
The Process is a little different when it comes to resetting your mini split heat pump:
- Make sure the heat pump is off. You can do this during the power outage.
- Locate your breaker box and flip the switch to turn off all power to the heat pump. Wait a moment and flip the switch back on.
- Wait approximately 30 minutes for the internal circuit breaker to recalibrate before turning the heat pump on again.
- Once the heat pump is turned on it should power up without any issues.
Since you reset it, the ductless mini split might not remember whether you were cooling or heating your home, so make sure you adjust the settings. You’ll also likely have to retune the temperatures of the air-handling units using your remote.
If for any reason your heat pump will not turn back on after a power outage it's possible the outage caused damage to your unit. In that case contact us and one of our certified technicians would be happy to assist you.
Stay warm this hurricane season and above all stay safe. Reach out to our team with any questions.
