Why our climate favours heat pumps
A heat pump moves heat rather than generating it, delivering two to four units of heat per unit of electricity in mild conditions. Lower Mainland winters rarely spend long below freezing, so a properly sized cold-climate unit operates in its efficient range almost all season. The same equipment then cools your home in July — no small thing since the 2021 heat dome made cooling a genuine safety consideration in this region.
Where a gas furnace still wins
Homes with electrical services that can't support a heat pump without a costly panel upgrade, buildings where the outdoor unit has no workable placement, and owners prioritizing lowest upfront cost over lifetime operating cost. Dual-fuel setups — heat pump primary, gas furnace backup — are also a legitimate middle path for larger homes, and we install them.
The sizing trap that ruins either choice
The most common failure we diagnose isn't the technology — it's sizing. An oversized furnace short-cycles; an undersized heat pump leans on backup heat and erases its efficiency advantage. Every conversion we quote starts with a room-by-room heat loss / heat gain calculation, and in older Vancouver and North Vancouver homes, an electrical panel assessment. Both are done by our own team, since we handle mechanical and electrical together.
Rebates and the real math
CleanBC and BC Hydro programs regularly offer meaningful rebates for switching from fossil-fuel heating to a heat pump; eligibility depends on your current system and the equipment installed. We include the applicable rebates and projected operating costs in every quote so you're comparing total cost, not sticker price.