1. REFERRALS
2. ENERGY AUDIT: The INITIAL step is to have an energy audit (INCLUDING THE ALL-IMPORTANT BLOWER DOOR TEST) of your house, and follow through on weatherization recommendations.
3. After weatherization, then install HEAT PUMP(s) FOR SPACE HEATING Choose an HVAC dealer.
The best advice is a referral by a satisfied customer. Referrals will be continuously added to the "REFERRALS" link (top of this page)
Read "Get & Evaluate Heat Pump Contractor Quotes" by Rewiring America
For HVAC selection, consider "QA Contractor Directory", a nation-wide directory by Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA is a professional organization). There is currently no assessment of heat pump knowledge or keeping up with technology. Accreditation Requirements include: licensed, registered, insured; agree to installation records/documentation review by ACCA; and participation in a continuous improvement process.
HVAC companies tend to specialize on one manufacturer, and ensure all employees are up-to-date with training from that manfacturer. An excellent technique to locate best dealer: use the manufacturer to help you select from the manufacturer’s list of dealers. FIRST: choose best manufacturer (see recommendations at bottom (just above the "Heat Pump Water Heater" section of this page). Then choose the best HVAC dealer: ranked by manufacturer in 3 to 5 categories for each of the top heat pumps (Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, Daikin, per references below) NOTE: I have heard at least one nay-sayer about using the manufacturer’s vendor list - but no information about why this doesn’t work! I personally followed this technique and am happy with the result.
Find Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, and Daikin’s sales/service firms by clicking one of the links, below, and entering your zip code. Then select the nearest top rated classification for each, and seek bids from all 3 vendors (one each of Mitsubishi, Fujitsu, and Daikin- although Daikin vendors are much harder to find, even though Daikin is largest heat pump manufacturer world-wide). I have found remarkable similarity in equipment specs across these 3 product lines.. HVAC providers specialize/train in particular manufacturers. Example: Mitsubishi ranks their service companies as “Diamond Contractor”, “Diamond Contractor Preferred”, and “Diamond Contractor Elite”; Fujitsu installers (contractor specialties are identified in 5 categories); Daikin installers (contractors identified in 3 colors: no color; blue; and green). These ranks are likely based on qualities the manufacturer tracks, such as training and sales.
QUESTIONS DURING CONTRACTOR VISIT TO YOUR HOUSE: ask for all- electric cold climate heat pump solution.
An all-electric solution will hopefully be suitable, but might not work for your particular house
Read about options;
watch July 12, 2023 video with case studies: Dual Fuel [heat pump + gas backup] Heating Systems- Advantage or Compromise?
Then after getting bids, compare the bids with the following:
1. Get 3 quotes (preferable). EVALUATE the quotes with ACCA "Residential Quality HVAC Installation - You SHould Get What You Paid For"
2. CHECK what the vendor is specifying for your house. Heat pumps are listed with their detailed specs at https://ashp.neep.org/#!/
Use the above site to LOOK UP the specified heat pump, and verify it has a flat (NOT DROOPING) heat output down to 5 degrees F - the minimum (record?) temperature for EWR Newark airport. Look up the Energy Star design temperature for YOUR NJ county (google “Design Temperature Limit Reference Guide (2019 Edition)”, and verify your heat pump will have ample heat output at YOUR design temperature. ASK the vendor's “Certified Building Analyst”/estimator what heat loss he calculated for your house or room, and what design temperature he assumed (my Mitsubishi analyst initially sized for 16 degrees, for reasons he could not explain, even though the house was in a county with 10 degree design temperature).
You might feel more comfortable if you run your own analysis of your house heat loss:
AVOID a gas furnace backup. If your house is sufficienly weatherized, you can add a relatively small heat strip for REALLY cold temporary nights (this strip will need a dedicated electric circuit to your electrical panel, and the panel must have the electrical capacity)
I told my selected Mitsubishi dealer to only bid “Energy Star” ranked heat pumps, so I would receive the utility rebate and tax credit.. The vendor's estimate and final bill automatically subtracted utility and special offers from my bill (the $2K tax credit was noted, but the bill stated I was on my own in filing my tax return and claiming tax credit). We can rely on the vendor to know which of their models comply with rebate and tax credit requirements.
BEST SINGLE SOURCE AND EXPLANATIONS: https://www.pickhvac.com/ (including whole-house systems)
RATINGS of DAIKIN, FUJITSU MITSUBISHI mini-split: https://www.pickhvac.com/mini-split/best-brands/daikin-vs-fujitsu-vs-mitsubishi-vs-lg/
BEST COLD CLIMATE HEAT PUMPS: MITSUBISHI, FUJITSU, DAIKIN 2023-2-4 "Choosing the Best Cold Climate Heat Pump" by Carbon Switch: Mitsubishi Hyper-Heating H2i; Fujitsu AOU series; Daikin Fit and Aurora; links provided to find nearby installers for each brand
BE WARY OF YOUTUBE VIDEOS which recommend heat pumps (EXAMPLE: top 5 mini-splits-2024). This sounds like paid advertising hype. Read comments at the bottom of the YouTube video. The rater may not have seen, nor tested the models. No mention of cold weather performance; many models are unknown/little-known manufacturers. Another factor: On 1/1/2025, all newly sold products are required to use low "Global Warming Potential" refrigerants (greatly reduce climate change impact of escaping refrigerants). Little/unknown manufacturers may not have enough manufacturing experience nor staff to thoroughly llife-test their new product designs.
: SUMMARY: For an appliance like heat pump water heater or heat pump dryer, I recommend using Lowes (AOSmith) or Home Depot (Rheem). Shop on-line to see all models (on-line will show more than local store inventory – local store might have NO sample for display and the water heaters are shipped from a regional warehouse). Choose based on ratings and evaluations. Have Lowes or Home depot use their own contactors to install. You can have Lowes or Home Depot deliver to your house (free or $50) but they dont haul away the old water heater. AO Smith and Rheem heat pump water heaters are very similar. If you need LOW noise (water heater is near living quarters on main floor of your house) , then specify the newest AO Smith Signature 900 “HPS” (also called Voltex HPTS, or Voltex 130 Series Proline XE Voltex). These come in various gallon capacity- and have a (very low) 45dBA noise spec. HOWEVER, my AO Smith Signature 900 heat pump water heater, installed 11/2023, arrived DOA (the factory said the symtoms indicated it had been erronrously shipped on its side). The replacement, had several independent component failures in the 1st 3 months.. The control assembly is great at identifying faults- it even detected its own failure. A replacement controller later died within 2 months. The 2nd dead tank was then replaced by a third tank, which is currently (as of 3/6/2024) without problems. Parts are shipped overnight free by AO Smith, but the homeowner must either self-install or have arrange repair by their own installer. See more details in following link:
FURTHER INFO ON HEAT PUMP WATER HEATERS: See 2024-1 Heat Pump Water Heaters and Recommendations by Steve Miller
(Steve Miller, updated 3/6/2024)