A/C or Heat Pump

Bobbo wrote:
We have a heat pump at home, and dearly wish we had one in the RV.

I have had about 7 heat pumps in my two houses and dearly wish I had natural gas so I could have decent heat.
bumpy

We have a heat pump at home, and dearly wish we had one in the RV.

We are debating the same thing. I have a 15k btu ducted AC and a spot for a second in our bedroom. Though a 13k btu will be good for the bedroom, we are looking to move the current one forward and putting in a heat-pump so it can utilize the ceiling ducts. With that being said, as mentioned, heat is non-existent as you approach freezing. With that being said, you should be using the ducted heat for your belly tanks. For us though, with it most always upper forties to lower fifties at night, I think a heat-pump would be ideal for us. I am torn with the 15k btu up front....way too big for such a small space....

Cale

Did you consider the cost up front? If that is not a show stopper, I could not think of a reason on why not to do it.

if you are buying an AC anyway, might as well make it a heat pump as long as you know their deficiencies. but NOT one of those small electric strip heaters they put in one.
bumpy

Hi,

The heat pump cost is in-significant, but it can put out more than double the Btu's of a space heater. Nearly 15,000 Btu's while at 57F outside temps, from a unit rated to cool at 13,500 Btu's. This is because it is actually cooling the outside air at about 13,500 BtuH, and the heat from the compressor motor is added to the freon, to give a total heat capacity a little greater than the cool rating in the summer time.

For reference, a space heater is about 5,200 Btu's per hour while on the 1,500 watt setting. They are kept just below 12.5 amps to keep them from tripping a 15 amp circuit breaker.

If you find that your new home will have a place to plug in the TH, and you will be heating it with your own power, you will like only using 1/3 the power with a heat pump compared to a electric heater.

To provide 80,000 Btu's of heating, you need to burn 1 gallon of propane, or 22 KW of electric or run a heat pump that will use about 5.5 KW to 8 KW, more power on a cooler day than on a warmer one. So the heat pump will use about 1/3 the power of a electric resistance heater.

Fred.

Either way-if your main AC is a heat pump I'd match it and put a unit back there.

Honestly-whether it will fulfill your needs is debatable:

The heat pumps work well when it's cool but not freezing-I find that even though my unit will make heat at 35 the heat blowing from up high does not make it comfortable sitting in the recliner-and when it shuts of you feel the missing heat right away-I need heat at the floor to make the unit nice to stay in(ceiling is high in the fiver) Now, in the garage that may not matter-if you're just using it to sleep-or for storage whatever heat you can get in should work for you.

Also-can't you manage your plugs to keep the heaters on and still make coffee? Usually with a 50A unit you have enough outlets to run 2 space heaters and have a kitchen outlet still on an unused circuit?

And-Does the CG pedestal have an extra 20A plug you can run an ext cord from to you garage? or a 30A outlet you could reduce down and use for extra power?