Electrification of Heat: What Every Homeowner Needs to Know
Electrification of heat is more than just a buzzword. It’s the future of energy-efficient residential HVAC systems.
By Anne Fonda
What is the Electrification of Heat?
The Electrification of Heat, sometimes called simply Electrification, is a worldwide move towards using electric clean energy instead of fossil fuels to produce heating in a home or other building. A hybrid heating system is also a move towards using electric energy for heating most of the time but switching to a natural gas (or other fossil fuel) furnace for extreme temperatures.
Industry experts say about 85% of Americans can get their heat from a heat pump system alone, while only 15% of Americans live in climates that are too frigid for heat pumps to handle the heating 100% of the time.
We recently sat down with Jason LeRoy, Director of Advanced Technology, Trane Residential HVAC to talk about the electrification of heat and the benefits for homeowners.
Why is electrification important?
“Fundamentally, it’s the key technology we’re using to decarbonize the ecosystem. Climate change and global warming are due mainly to carbon emissions, and in many cases, burning fossil fuels can be the biggest carbon emitter. In the long term, the electric grid will be running off of renewable, sustainable, clean energy. And so, then when you start to electrify your heating, the net effect is we’re going to be reducing our carbon emissions.”
Why is the electrification of heat a growing trend? Do you see it continuing?
“The world is on this trajectory of electrifying – we’re seeing it in automobiles, and we’re seeing the greening of the power grid. By developing electric heating systems today, we’re positioning ourselves and our customers to be ready to take advantage of that. It’s a chicken and egg scenario - you don’t want to wait until the grid is completely green. Electrification and greening of the grid need to happen simultaneously and strategically.”
What’s in it for the homeowner? What are the top 4 things they need to know about electrification?
“Everything you’ve heard as a negative about heat pumps – we’ve fixed them and made them better. We have intelligence in our systems so that we can control the delivered warm air to always keep it in the comfort range. ”
- Jason LeRoy, Director of Advanced Technology, Trane Residential
1. Heat pump technology is proven technology
“Fundamentally, heat pumps are not a new technology. They’ve been around since the 1950s and 1960s. Trane has always been an industry leader - we made heat pumps reliable in the 70s when the oil crisis made electric heating attractive compared to fossil fuels. We have over 60 years of engineering expertise in making heat pumps a reliable heating and cooling solution.”
2. Heat pumps work in cold weather
“We in the HVAC industry have made quantum leaps in heat pump technology. It really started about twelve years ago when we commercialized variable-speed, inverter-driven heat pumps. These systems can boost heating capacity significantly by overspeeding the compressor during low ambient winter conditions. Now it’s going even further with our cold climate heat pump (CCHP), which is in development now.
My team participated in the Department of Energy (DOE) Cold Climate Heat Pump Challenge. After undergoing and surpassing the DOE’s strenuous laboratory performance requirements, our CCHP underwent field testing in Boise, Idaho where it heated and cooled a house for two full seasons there. It provided problem-free operation while saving the homeowners 15% on energy compared to their baseline furnace system.
Now we’re in the product development phase where our engineers are working on the design optimization to make it super reliable, cost-effective, and an energy-efficient heating system for cold climates. While final performance specifications are yet to be defined, the goal will be to provide electrification of heat to as many homes as is economically viable for all stakeholders, and to proliferate more widespread adoption of heat pumps across the country.
We hope to have it available for homeowners to install sometime in 2026.”
3. Heat pumps are built to last
“Our heat pumps undergo extreme testing at our SEET lab in Tyler, TX. SEET stands for Systems Extreme Environmental Testing. Products undergo the equivalent of 5 years of operation in 16 weeks in our Highly Accelerated Life Testing SEET lab, which simulates harsh weather and other operating conditions. With a heat pump from Trane Technologies, you’re going to get superior reliability over our competition.”
4. Heat pump cost is comparable to other systems
“While a heat pump is slightly more expensive than an air conditioner, it’s important to remember that the heat pump is replacing two systems: an air conditioner AND a furnace. That means the net upfront cost of your new heat pump, which is a heating and cooling system, is going to be similarly priced to a furnace and air conditioner combination.
When you consider the above in addition to the long-term savings and benefits, a heat pump makes the most sense in many situations. High-efficiency equipment reduces electricity demand and energy consumption. Electrification builds on that by reducing carbon emissions. Add a smart thermostat for even further savings.”
Explore the federal tax credits and heat pump rebates that can help offset the initial cost of electrification.
Is a high-efficiency heat pump system worth the extra cost? What are the long-term savings?
“Just like the consumer is faced with the question “Is a high-efficiency air conditioner worth the extra cost”, it depends on a lot of factors including but not limited to what is important to that particular consumer, the climate they live in, and the cost of electricity where they live (the more expensive electricity is, the more you’re going to benefit from a high-efficiency unit). All of these factors need to be considered when determining which system is right for you.”
What does the future hold?
I will also ask about the elephant in the room. If the new administration is trying to claw back funding for heat pump rebates, where does that leave the homeowner and Trane dealers?
“We don’t know what the future holds regarding federal funding of incentive programs or HVAC regulations. What we do know is that Trane is committed to sustainability in all we do. That means we will continue to innovate and offer some of the most durable and energy-efficient HVAC equipment on the market today. Our dealers will continue to offer the highest level of installation and maintenance services.
We will continue to move forward to a more sustainable future rather than backward.”
What HVAC system do you have in your home?
“I have a Trane variable speed heat pump (20 TruComfort™ Variable Speed Heat Pump) with a communicating gas furnace backup. So, a Dual Fuel system. It's the best system you can get. My heat pump will run until it’s about 20-22° F outside, but below that, it cannot quite keep up, so it automatically switches to the furnace. Based on statistical weather data for Tyler, TX (where I live), there are approximately 40-50 hours a year below 22F.”
Learn some more cool things about heat pumps
Jason recently participated in the webinar Cool Things About Heat Pumps put on by We Don’t Have Time. Watch it for even more information on the benefits of heat pumps and the electrification of heat. Click the image below to watch the webinar.
Trane’s commitment to sustainability and electrification
Electrification fits in with Trane Technologies’ climate commitment, the Gigaton Challenge. Residential and commercial use of our products is our largest area of opportunity to reduce CO 2 emissions. To match the scale of that opportunity, we set the Gigaton Challenge, the first-of-its-kind climate commitment related to customer product use of any B2B company.
Through this commitment, we've set a goal to reduce one billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions (CO2e) from our customer's carbon footprints by 2030. Our math shows that this reduction equates to 2% of the world's annual emissions – or, the annual emissions of Italy, France, and the U.K. combined.
Work with the HVAC sustainability experts
Interested in learning how converting from a gas furnace heating system to a heat pump system could work in your home? Contact your local Trane dealer for a consultation. Be sure to ask about systems that qualify for federal tax credits and heat pump rebates.
Anne Fonda, Content Writer
A Content Writer with Trane Technologies, Anne Fonda researches topics and writes for Trane® and associated residential HVAC brands. She works in collaboration with Trane Technologies subject matter experts, offering easy-to-understand, informative content on complex topics. Her goal is to help consumers make informed decisions on the products and services they need.
She has written for HVAC and other service provider websites for over 16 years. Before transitioning to web content writing, Anne had a 14-year stint as an award-winning journalist. She graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Journalism.
When she’s not working, Anne enjoys playing word games, reading, gardening, spending time with family, and visiting gardens and museums.
Expert review by Jason LeRoy He is the Director of Advanced Technology, Trane Residential HVAC. His team is focused on the development of improved HVAC components, system technologies, and the evaluation and development of alternative, not-in-kind, technologies. He is the holder of seven U.S. patents and has served as the chairman of ASHRAE’s technical committees 8.11 – Unitary and Room Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps and 1.1 – Thermodynamics and Psychrometrics.
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