Heat pumps have also been around for a long time: the first heat pump was built in 1857, and Geneva’s City Hall in Switzerland installed a heat pump in 1928 that is still in use. And the technology has seen major improvements: homes that use modern heat pump systems are very comfortable in all seasons even in Waterloo Region’s climate, and they can also go a long way toward reducing our carbon footprints. 

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Indeed, think tanks have been recommending a switch to heat pumps for quite some time and governments are increasingly looking to the technology as a means of cutting greenhouse gas emissions from buildings. 

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In simple terms, the refrigeration cycle works as follows:

1. A refrigerant gas at low pressure and temperature absorbs heat through an evaporator in the location where we want to gather heat from (for example from outside in winter, from inside in summer).
2. A compressor then squeezes the gas, which raises the pressure and the temperature of the gas.  The heat that was absorbed is sent through a condenser to the place where we want to direct the heat (for example, inside in winter and outside in summer). 
3. The refrigerant is then allowed to expand at the expansion valve which lowers the pressure and temperature and the cycle starts again. 

The process is reversible so that heat always travels in the desired direction: toward the inside in winter and toward the outside in summer. Heat pumps are not only used for space heating and cooling, they can also be used to heat water for domestic use or for boilers.  Heat pumps of all kinds are very energy efficient because they move several times more heat energy than the systems use to drive the process.  The net result is the transfer of heat from one location to another using very little added energy.  

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Benefits of heat pumps

Besides being the cool kid on the block, heat pumps have many benefits.

• Can provide all of your home’s heating and cooling, or hot water needs;
• Are more energy efficient because they move heat rather than generating heat; 
• Can replace a furnace and an air conditioning system or a conventional water heater;
• Can make your home comfortable year round;
• Use electricity, which can be sourced from renewables; 
• Generate far fewer greenhouse gas emissions compared to natural gas furnaces when operating, especially if powered by clean electricity; 
• Do not generate any harmful carbon monoxide in the home when operating;
• Can operate very quietly; 
• And much more.. 

Upgrading your home’s space and water heating systems to heat pumps may be the single most important step you can take to reduce your home’s carbon footprint and help avert catastrophic climate change.  Buildings are the third largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Canada after the oil and gas industry and transportation. The burning of fossil fuels for space and water heating is responsible for the bulk of these emissions.

 Heat pumps are powered with electricity, which in Ontario is mostly generated from emission-free sources.  Furthermore, heat pumps are many times more energy efficient than conventional heating systems. Data analysis suggests that in the Waterloo Region, a switch to heat pumps for space and water heating can simultaneously reduce an average home’s greenhouse gas emissions by ~70% and also reduce total energy use by ~70%!

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Here are some examples:

In Waterloo Region:

• Waterloo Region’s Community Energy Investment Strategy identified opportunities to:
  • Incrementally increase the number of residential buildings served by air source heat pumps to 30% by 2041 and the number of commercial buildings served to 40% by 2041.
  • Incrementally increase the number of residential buildings served by ground source heat pumps to 20% by 2041 and the number of commercial buildings served to 40% by 2041.
• ClimateActionWR TransformWR
  • Strategy 3.1: Decarbonize building heating and cooling, and water heating, by replacing furnaces and hot water heaters with highly energy efficient and low-carbon equipment or fuel sources.
  • Action 3.1.2: Implement a public literacy campaign to explain and promote the adoption of heat pumps for space and water heating in residential and commercial buildings.
  • Action 3.1.3 Switch home and business heating and water heating off of fossil fuels.

In Ontario:

• The Made in Ontario Environment Plan includes a commitment to:
  • Encourage the use of heat pumps for space and water heating where it makes sense, as well as innovative community-based heating systems (e.g. district energy).

In Canada:

• Canada’s Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change includes a commitment to:
  • Conducting Canada’s first-ever national infrastructure assessment, starting in 2021, to help identify needs and priorities in the built environment, and undertake long-term planning towards a net-zero emissions future.
  • Accelerating work with provincial and territorial governments to develop and adopt increasingly stringent model building codes, with the ultimate goal of a net-zero energy ready model building code by 2030.
• At a 2017 Energy and Mines Ministers conference, the following aspirational goals for Canada were outlined:
  • By 2035, all space heating technologies for sale in Canada meet an energy performance of more than 100%. (note: at this time, only heat pumps can achieve this)
  • By 2035, all water heating technologies for sale in Canada meet an energy performance greater than 100% (EF greater than 1). (note: at this time, only heat pumps can achieve this)

Other

A research paper titled Carbon-Neutral Pathways for the United States stated:

• “All blueprints for the United States agree on the key tasks for the 2020s: increasing the capacity of wind and solar power by 3.5 times, retiring coal plants, and increasing electric vehicle and electric heat pump sales to >50% of market share.”

Rocky Mountain Institute publication “Heat Pumps for Hot Water: Installed Costs in New Homes”

• “Residential heat pump water heaters (HPWHs) are poised for explosive market growth in the coming decade due to technological advancements and political pressure stemming from climate and/or public health initiatives.”

As of December 2020, over 42 municipalities in the US have adopted residential building codes that promote or require electrification of space and water heating. This number is expected to grow rapidly.

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