Heat pumps: Auckland & NZ wide.

How does a heat pump work?

A heat pump is a device that can be used to heat your home, even on a cold day. It works by transferring heat from the outside air to the inside. Instead of generating heat like traditional heating systems, heat pumps use a clever mechanism to extract heat energy from the outdoor air and transfer it inside your home.

Even in cold temperatures, there is still some heat energy present in the air compared to the temperature of the heat pump's refrigerant. The heat pump's refrigerant can extract this heat energy from the outdoor air.

To understand it simply, you can think of a heat pump like a refrigerator in reverse. Just as a refrigerator extracts heat from its interior, making it cooler, a heat pump extracts heat from the outdoor air, making it warmer. In the case of heating, the heat pump extracts heat from the colder outdoors and releases warm air inside your home.

Technical explanation of how a heat pump works:

The heat pump system consists of four main components: the evaporator, compressor, condenser, and expansion valve. Each of these components plays a vital role in the heat transfer process.

The process begins with the evaporator, located outside your home. It has copper tubes and fins. The refrigerant enters the evaporator as a low-pressure, cool liquid. As the outdoor air passes over the evaporator fins, the refrigerant absorbs heat from the air, causing it to evaporate and turn into a gas.

Once the refrigerant vaporizes, it moves into the compressor, which is like the "heart" of the heat pump system. The compressor pressurizes the refrigerant gas, increasing its temperature and energy level. This compression process significantly raises the refrigerant's pressure and temperature.

The high-pressure, high-temperature refrigerant gas then moves into the condenser, which is located inside your home. The condenser is another set of copper tubes with fins. As the refrigerant flows through the condenser, indoor air passes over the fins, and the refrigerant releases its heat energy, causing it to condense back into a liquid state. This releases warm air into your home.

After the condensation process, the refrigerant, now in liquid form, moves through the expansion valve. The expansion valve is a small passage that reduces the pressure of the refrigerant, allowing it to rapidly expand. As the pressure decreases, the refrigerant becomes much colder.

This cold liquid refrigerant then flows back to the evaporator, and the cycle starts again as it absorbs heat from the outside air, repeating the process.

By continuously transferring heat from the outdoor air to the indoor space, a heat pump can effectively heat your home, even in cold weather. Likewise, with reverse cycle operation, it can cool your home even when it's hot outside.

Efficiently create 4 seasons comfort in your home with a heat pump.

Regenerate response

Regenerate response

Types of Heat Pumps

There many types of heat pump but the three of most interest and appeal in New Zealand are:

• Hi Wall/Split System Heat Pumps: These have the familiar long rectangular indoor unit that is mounted high on one of your internal walls. It is connected to an outside unit that includes the compressor.
• Floor Heat Pumps also known as Floor consoles: A floor heat pump heats you a bit more quickly due in part to the fact that they are at the same height as you when you're sitting. They are a good option when you don't have suitable wall space for a wall mounted heat pump as they sit on the floor instead. Read more about Floor Console Heat Pumps.
• Ducted Heat Pumps: A ducted system which distributes heat to multiple rooms via ducts to roof vents.

Heat Pump Prices

We have a range of heat pump air conditioners available to suit most budgets with levels depending on the heating output required, features, design and brand. Get in touch with us, to request for a quote.

We believe any heat pump is better than using other forms of electric heating so we have a range of brands available to make having a heat pump affordable.

Note that many advertised heat pumps are for the unit only - our prices are for installed heat pumps based on a back-to-back installation.

Compare heat pump prices:

The two most important factors to consider as you compare heat pump prices and quotes are:

1. Does it include installation? The advertised prices and specials of appliance retailers usually exclude installation cost. Typically the installation cost they add is $850 - $1500 for a back-to-back install so it's a significant factor to take into account.
2. What size heat pump do I need? The size heat pump required varies a lot depending on the room, state of the house, geography etc. If you get the heat pump size wrong:
   • • It will not perform as well - you'll have uneven heat in the room.
     • The heat pump will not work as designed and may breakdown.
     • As a rental property (either now or when you sell your home) it will not comply with the Healthy Homes Standards if the unit is too big or too small.

If the size of the heat pump differs between two suppliers check if they have used the Tenancy Services Heating Calculator. This is the methodology Brightr uses to correctly calculate capacity and it will also ensure if your home becomes a rental property in the future, that it is a compliant size.

Heat Pump Sizing

The size heat pump you need for your room depends on the size of the room, the number and size of windows and orientation of the room to the sun. Whether or not the home is insulated will also affect performance.

As each home is individual, a home assessment from us is necessary to ensure the correct size heat pump is quoted. A heat pump that is too large for a room can have as bad comfort and running cost implications as one that is too small.

Heat Pump Calculators

There are many heat pump calculators available from the very simple to highly complex.

Heat Pump Calculation for Rental or Potential Rental Properties

With the introduction of the Healthy Homes Standards for rental properties, MBIE requires that the heating requirement of the main living room is carefully calculated and met for all rental properties. Given that you home may one day be sold and used as a rental - it is best to get a correctly sized heat pump.

The MBIE calculator is extremely detailed and requires precise measurements of the room, walls and windows plus any adjacent spaces to determine the required heating capacity.

You can check out the MBIE Tenancy Services Heating Assessment Tool or alternatively have one of our team come measure it up for you and give you an obligation free quote.

Click to see if you can calculate what size Heat Pump you need yourself. Or contact us we're pros at using it.

Heat pump running costs.

Heat pumps are not as expensive as you'd think to run. Heating your home with a heat pump can cost around $1 per day but it very much depends on many factors including the region you live in, size of the room, the amount of insulation you have and of course how often and for how long you use it.

Read more about heat pump running costs.

Some heat pumps are less effective as the temperature approaches zero - while others can be more effective.

The less effective models may have been designed primarily for countries with a different climate to New Zealand and be optimised for cooling.

We have ensured that we have brands and models designed for New Zealand's climate including the extreme cold of Otago, Southland and the Central Plateau.

Both Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have models that perform very well at low temperatures. In fact Mitsubishi Electric guarantee their heat pumps will operate in weather as low as 15°C.

Read more about Heat Pumps for cold climates.

Buying a Heat Pump?

Buying a Heat Pump for the first time can be challenging as you don't know what you don't know - and that's why we're here to help. But firstly congratulations on considering buying a heat pump:

• You'll be saving power and money versus other heat sources.
• You'll create a healthier environment for your home.
• You'll be using a clean-heat that doesn't pollute your neighbourhood in winter.
• and they're surprisingly cheap to run.

Compare Heat Pumps

What should I compare when buying a heat pump? The priorities may differ depending on whether it's your first heat pump, for a living room vs a bedroom, your home or a rental

• How much will it cost to buy? A heat pump is a significant cost for a household. Our perspective is that any heat pump is better than using radiant heaters so we have a range of trusted brands and price points to make switching to a heat pump easier.
• How efficient is it to run? What is the annual estimated running cost of the model. The most efficent models may cost a little more but save you more money in running costs.
• What service support does it have? A heat pump should give you many years of trouble-free operation. To ensure this, we only sell brands that from experience we know will stand behind their products with the parts, advice and service network necessary to ensure long operation.
• Is it an established brand? How well known is that heat pump brand and what will a future purchaser of my home recognise and appreciate the
• How does it perform in my location? Heat pump performance in Auckland during winter is vastly different to Dunedin and Queenstown. Some brands perform better in very cold conditions especially Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Most other brands have a lower performance at 2 degrees than at 7 degrees whereas these two brands excel in the cold.
• How quiet is it? In bedrooms in particular, quiet operation is a priority. It's not only the noise of the indoor unit you need to consider. If the outdoor unit for your heat pump is too noisy - you may have issues with your neighbours. There are so many noise complaints to Councils relating to heat pump noise that Auckland Council has published a pamphlet on the issue.
• Designer heat pumps? A living room heat pump is also on display for all to see and there are a range of designs, and colours, available. Do you want it to be a bold talking point or absolutely minimalist.
• Other features to consider:
  • Wifi so you can start your heat pump on your way home from work.
  • Timers: auto-off for when you go to bed and auto-on for a warm bedroom in the morning.

You can compare the heating performance, indoor and outdoor sound levels of various heat pumps on our Quiet Heat Pumps page.

80% Heat Pump Subsidies

EECA's Warmer Kiwi Homes programme offers 80% subsidies to homeowners that live in a home built before 2008 in a low income area who don't already have a heat pump, wood burner or flued gas heater in their main living room. Community Service Card holders are also eligible. It is a requirement to be adequately insulated before you can get your heat pump installed - the good news being that insulation is subsidised too and we can help you with both insulation and heat pumps.

What is a Low-Income Area for Subsidies?

The Warmer Kiwi Homes programme targets neighbourhoods that hve been identified through census data to be in most need through a statistic called the "New Zealand Deprivation Index". The 30% of homes identified as being in most need are eligible for the subsidies if they are owner-occupied whether or not the owner has a Community Services Card. The NZDI is address specific so it is only by checking your address that eligibility can be determined.

Interest-Free Mortgage Top Ups

Several banks allow their mortgage-holding customers to get an interest-free mortgage top-up to cover the cost of insulation and heat pumps. This is recognized by the banks of the health, home improvement and sustainability benefits of insulation and heating.

Yes we do service heat pumps to ensure more efficient operation. Read more here.

Spring and summer is a good time to service heat pumps after a busy winter of use. We recommend getting your heat pump serviced at least once a year. Our qualified heat pump teams will check both indoor and outdoor units to make sure they're working properly and efficiently, give everything a good clean and tidy, and replace the remote control battery if needed.