02/23/2024

What Would Happen if Every American Got a Heat Pump

Getting these devices into more U.S. homes would help curb emissions

One of the most powerful weapons you can wield to fight climate change is... an appliance. A heat pump is a fully electric device that transfers warmth from outdoor air into a building, then reverses in the summer to act like an air conditioning unit. It’s much more efficient than burning planet-warming gas in a furnace, and it will save the average American household more than $550 a year on their utility bill, according to one estimate.

Emphasis on average. Every American home is different in size and energy efficiency, and the U.S. hosts wildly different climates that determine how a heat pump operates. But theoretically, what would happen if every US household got a heat pump? According to a new study in the journal Joule, it could slash the emissions in the residential sector by a staggering 36 to 64 percent, and cut overall U.S. emissions by 5 to 9 percent.

Those heat pumps would be cost-effective even without subsidies in 65 million American homes, the modeling found. However, in reality, the feds and individual states are already scrambling to reduce the costs of heat pumps, making adoption increasingly affordable. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 provides thousands of dollars in rebates or tax credits to install one.

Please select this link to read the complete article from WIRED.