Dozens of regulations affecting HVACR equipment manufacturers, along with refrigerant regulations and technological innovations in variable-speed technology, have resulted in a bevy of change for condenser unit manufacturers.
Sharp has started selling mini splits on Comfortup.com, a leading online retailer of Watsco Group. ComfortUp.com will be offering the full line of Sharp ductless mini split heat pump and air conditioning systems.
Just about every manufacturer recommends homeowners have their air-source heat pumps serviced twice a year — once in the spring and once in the fall. Most believe that semi-annual maintenance helps keep equipment operating at peak performance and ensures the unit is ready for the heat of summer or cold of winter.
Up until recently, sales of air-source heat pumps were on a tear, growing from 1.6 million units in 2009 to 2.3 million units in 2014, according to the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). But, in 2015, sales of heat pumps slipped 3.6 percent from the previous year.
Not that long ago, if a conversation centered on heat pumps, it was fairly safe to assume that the equipment referred to ducted, split-system, electric, air-source units. That assumption started to change a few years ago with the growing popularity of ductless heat pumps.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), collaborating with Emerson Climate Technologies, developed a prototype for an air-source heat pump for the colder regions of the country — one that heats better and uses significantly less energy.
This unit is an efficient solution for single-room heating and cooling. Its 5.1-inch-thick design allows the coil to be used as an unobtrusive zoning solution.