my furnace is on its last legs (electric). my heat pump probably doesn't have too much either (plus, SEER 10).
right now i'm in the investigation stage and would like to get recommendations from the forum here (especially @Highbeam and @begreen )
house is 2300 SF. puget sound area of WA (just north of seattle). house is decently sealed (1979 construction with significant upgrades by me). 700 SF is in the basement which is finished, air sealed and lined with 3" of foam. current rheem furnace and heat pump heat the house just fine, though the heat pump struggles when temps are near freezing (or below). indoor temps are well-balanced up and downstairs and room to room.
this past year we heated 100% with the EPA fireplace. while it's not a blazeking stove and the awesome 24/7 burn capabilities, it worked fine enough (though lots of wood). i suspect we will try to keep it as the primary heat source for at least the next 3-6 years as we're starting our family and this would take us into the kindergarten age where my wife would resume working FT. at that point, i suspect fires will either be a weekend thing or an evening thing. at that point in time, the furnace/heat pump would need to do the lifting.
the other key info (i think) is that i would like to recirc the fireplace-heated air in the house using the furnace. i know some will say this doesn't work and whatnot, but it did and does from what i've seen. since the fireplace is on the main floor, and the basement is below, my basement will be the controlling temperature in the house. i plan to relocate my thermostat down there so that area controls the temperature of the house, not the upstairs (which is always 72+ with the fireplace). so, all that is to say that even when technically heating the house 100% with the fireplace, i think we'll have a situation where the heat pump/furnace will kick on periodically to recirc the air in the house to get it down to the basement. i think all of this is important in the sense of what kind of furnace fan to get (high efficiency, multistage?)
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so, i would love to get recommendations on the best approach here. i don't think we need top of the line, and we don't want bottom of the barrel. just something nice enough that'll last 20 years and be reasonable on efficiency. i'm a newb when it comes to HVAC and all the variables (2 stage, mini split, variable speed, yadda yadda).
thanks
right now i'm in the investigation stage and would like to get recommendations from the forum here (especially @Highbeam and @begreen )
house is 2300 SF. puget sound area of WA (just north of seattle). house is decently sealed (1979 construction with significant upgrades by me). 700 SF is in the basement which is finished, air sealed and lined with 3" of foam. current rheem furnace and heat pump heat the house just fine, though the heat pump struggles when temps are near freezing (or below). indoor temps are well-balanced up and downstairs and room to room.
this past year we heated 100% with the EPA fireplace. while it's not a blazeking stove and the awesome 24/7 burn capabilities, it worked fine enough (though lots of wood). i suspect we will try to keep it as the primary heat source for at least the next 3-6 years as we're starting our family and this would take us into the kindergarten age where my wife would resume working FT. at that point, i suspect fires will either be a weekend thing or an evening thing. at that point in time, the furnace/heat pump would need to do the lifting.
the other key info (i think) is that i would like to recirc the fireplace-heated air in the house using the furnace. i know some will say this doesn't work and whatnot, but it did and does from what i've seen. since the fireplace is on the main floor, and the basement is below, my basement will be the controlling temperature in the house. i plan to relocate my thermostat down there so that area controls the temperature of the house, not the upstairs (which is always 72+ with the fireplace). so, all that is to say that even when technically heating the house 100% with the fireplace, i think we'll have a situation where the heat pump/furnace will kick on periodically to recirc the air in the house to get it down to the basement. i think all of this is important in the sense of what kind of furnace fan to get (high efficiency, multistage?)
---
so, i would love to get recommendations on the best approach here. i don't think we need top of the line, and we don't want bottom of the barrel. just something nice enough that'll last 20 years and be reasonable on efficiency. i'm a newb when it comes to HVAC and all the variables (2 stage, mini split, variable speed, yadda yadda).
thanks