Heat Pumps Explained: How They Heat, Cool, and Cut Your Electricity Bill

Talk to a Quebec homeowner about heating these days and the heat pump comes up within minutes. It's on the wall of the neighbour's bungalow, in the real estate listings, and in the rebate programs. The promise: heat in winter, cool in summer, and deliver more heat than the electricity it consumes. That's not magic, it's thermodynamics. Here's how it works, why it's so efficient, and what it can actually save you.

What exactly is a heat pump?

Unlike an electric baseboard or a furnace, a heat pump doesn't create heat: it moves it. The principle is exactly the one behind your refrigerator, running in reverse. A fridge pulls heat out of the box and dumps it into the kitchen; a heat pump pulls heat out of the outdoor air and transfers it into the house.

Even on a cold day, outdoor air contains thermal energy. A refrigerant that boils at very low temperature absorbs that heat outside; a compressor concentrates it, and an exchanger releases it indoors. In summer, a valve simply reverses the cycle: the heat pump extracts heat from the house and rejects it outside. That's why the same machine both heats and cools.

Why it's so efficient

An electric baseboard converts electricity into heat at 100% efficiency: every kilowatt-hour consumed becomes one kilowatt-hour of heat. That's decent, but it's a ceiling. A heat pump has no such ceiling, because it doesn't make heat, it moves it. With one kilowatt-hour of electricity, it typically delivers two to four kilowatt-hours of heat, depending on the outdoor temperature. That's the equivalent of 200 to 400% efficiency.

That ratio is called the coefficient of performance (COP). On spec sheets you'll also see SEER2, which measures cooling efficiency, and HSPF2, which measures heating efficiency over a whole season. The higher those numbers, the less the unit consumes for the same comfort.

But what about our winters?

It's the question everyone asks, and rightly so. The colder it gets outside, the less heat there is to extract, and the more a heat pump loses capacity and efficiency. Models from fifteen or twenty years ago became nearly useless below -12 °C or -15 °C, which left lasting doubts.

Today's cold-climate certified units change the picture: they keep heating down to -25 °C, even -30 °C for some models. At -15 °C, a good heat pump still delivers about twice as much heat as a baseboard for the same electricity. Efficiency declines as the mercury drops, but it stays ahead for the vast majority of the heating season.

For the coldest nights in January, a backup takes over: in most Quebec homes, that's simply the existing baseboards or furnace. The heat pump plus baseboards duo is in fact the most common setup here: the heat pump does the heavy lifting, the baseboards fill in the extremes.

Wall-mounted, central, multi-zone: the main types

• Wall-mounted (ductless). The most common in Quebec. One outdoor unit, one indoor head on the wall, no ducts needed. Budget roughly $4,000 to $8,000 installed for a single zone. It covers an open living area well, but closed rooms and the upper floor still lean on the baseboards.
• Central. Connected to existing ductwork, it heats and cools the whole house evenly. Budget generally $12,000 to $25,000 depending on the house and the unit. A logical choice if you already have ducts (an old forced-air furnace, for example).
• Multi-zone. A single outdoor unit feeds several indoor heads, handy for covering bedrooms or a basement without ducts.
• Geothermal. The heat pump draws heat from the ground, where the temperature is stable year-round, rather than from the air. It's the most efficient option, but installation often exceeds $30,000: an investment measured in decades.

How much can you actually save?

It all depends on what the heat pump replaces. In a home heated with oil or propane, the conversion is often dramatic: Quebec electricity costs less per unit of heat, especially once multiplied by the heat pump's efficiency.

In an all-electric home, the math is still very attractive. Heating accounts for more than half of a typical Quebec home's electricity bill. A properly sized wall-mounted unit, which takes over a good share of that load at two to three times the efficiency of baseboards, commonly cuts heating costs by 20 to 30%. A central system, which covers the whole house, can do even better.

Two honest caveats. First, cooling: if you didn't have air conditioning before, your summer consumption will rise a little, even though a heat pump cools far more efficiently than an old window unit. Second, rebates: programs like Hydro-Québec's LogisVert offer financial help toward certified efficient units. Amounts and conditions evolve, so check the current rules before you sign.

A few tips before you buy

• Insulate first. A leaky house wastes heat no matter what produces it. Air sealing and insulation improve any system's performance, and sometimes let you buy a smaller unit.
• Insist on proper sizing. Too powerful, and the unit short-cycles and wears out; too small, and the baseboards keep doing the work. Ask for a heat-loss calculation, not an eyeball estimate.
• Check cold-weather performance. Look at the heat output at -25 °C and the HSPF2 rating, not just the price. ENERGY STAR cold-climate certified models are a good benchmark.
• Choose a qualified installer with an RBQ licence. Installation quality directly drives real-world performance and the unit's lifespan.
• Think about placement. The outdoor unit should sit above the snow line, sheltered from snow sliding off the roof, and ideally away from bedroom windows and the neighbour's patio.
• Maintain it. Clean the filters regularly, keep snow and ice clear of the outdoor unit, and have it inspected periodically.

Heat pumps and your home's value

On the real estate market, a heat pump checks two boxes that matter more and more to buyers: air conditioning in summer and reasonable energy bills year-round. A recent, efficient system reassures buyers, gets noticed during heat-wave showings, and takes a future expense off their list. As with a roof, you won't always recover the investment dollar for dollar at resale, but it makes the sale easier and removes a negotiating lever.

Curious what your home is worth today? Enter your address on Evalio for a free estimate, then explore your street and neighbourhood. It's a good starting point for understanding your market, before and after an improvement project.