Emergency A/C Replacement
If your A/C dies in the middle of a heat wave, you can still swap it out for a cold climate heat pump. This guide will walk you through the swap in a few short steps.
A quick warning for you:
Everything will push you towards swapping your old A/C for a new one. It's what most HVAC companies are set up to do...but you'll probably regret it.
Clean Energy Canada asked over 3,000 Canadian heat pump owners if they would recommend a heat pump to their friends or neighbours. Here's what they said.
⚠️91% of Canadian heat pump owners would recommend one to their neighbours. But Canada and the US are still playing catch-up with countries like Sweden and Norway, where 2/3 of homes are heated and cooled by heat pumps. ~Image Source
⏱️First things first: buy yourself some time
Your heat pump will probably take a couple of days to get installed. Getting cool now will help
you make decisions from a place of comfort, not desperation.
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Popsicles, ice cream, and cold drinks are your new best friends.
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Dunk your head and/or feet into cold water—we have more nerves here, so the cooling is very effective.
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Close the blinds to keep the afternoon sun out.
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Escape to the movies, the library, or your favourite coffee shop for a few hours.
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Fill up your water bottle and keep it loaded with ice cubes.
Now that you're not sweating, let's get you on the road to your first heat pump.
🔨Step 1: Find a trustworthy contractor
Like with car mechanics and arborists, you don’t want to take chances with your heat pump installer. Let’s find you a contractor who knows what they're doing, won’t overcharge, and will pick up the phone if there are issues later on.
The 📞1 Call Contractor Plan will help you find someone trustworthy (and fast!). Jump over there and submit the contact form! Just be sure to mention it's an emergency.
❓Already have a contractor in mind?
Sadly, we've seen highly recommended contractors skip important steps, like heat pump sizing and ductwork checks. Ask these questions to make sure your heat pump works well from Day 1.
Don't be shy! The questions also help you get incentives and free extended warranties—it pays to ask!
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It will probably take the contractors a few hours to get quotes together, so this is a good spot to snuggle up with our Your First Heat Pump Guidebook and learn the lingo that will be on your quote.
💵Step 2: Understand the costs
Upfront Costs
Heat pumps can cost anywhere between $8K on the low end and $30K on the high end.
Part of the challenge with estimating how much a heat pump will cost you is that it's kind of like asking, "How much does a car cost?" It depends! How fancy a car do you want? How often do you drive? Those types of questions are perfectly relevant for heat pumps, too, which makes it difficult to give a good cost estimate without actually visiting your home and talking to you about your behaviour. That's why we recommend talking to either Sarah or Michelle in the 📞1 Call Contractor Plan—they'll take the time to understand your home, your budget, and your needs before making any recommendations.
There are also incentives for heat pumps (but not for A/Cs!). Torontonians usually get $1K-$2.5K back on their heat pump through the Home Renovation Savings Program—this makes the cost of a heat pump comparable to the cost of a good-quality A/C.
There are heat pump financing options through the contractors themselves and the City of Toronto’s Home Energy Loan Program. You should never have to take on another mortgage or accept a lien to get financed for a heat pump.
⚠️Your heat pump runs for more hours in a year than any other appliance. Treat yourself to a good one (if you can!).
Ongoing Costs:
Most people save on their summer cooling bills when they switch to a heat pump. But this is usually because they've switched out a 15+ year old A/C with a brand new (more efficient) heat pump.
Since heat pumps both heat and cool, you have to think about heat pump costs over the whole year. So, will you save money over the whole year by switching to a heat pump?
To answer whether you'll save or not, we collected the before and after utility bills of 10 Toronto homes that switched to heat pumps. Our big finding? Running a heat pump is cost-comparable to a gas furnace or boiler (but the environmental benefits are lopsided in favour of heat pumps!).
We're not hiding anything by being unspecific: most houses did save money, but some houses saw (small) increases in their bills. To get into the weeds and to make sure you end up on the right side of the savings equation, read our findings here.
💵Finally, there is financing! Not everyone has the full cost of a cold climate heat pump ready at a moment's notice. Of course, an exploitative financing arrangement is the stuff of nightmares. If your candidate installers offer financing, make sure you:
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Have a copy of the contracts
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Understand the interest rate you will be paying now and in future
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Are you aware of any exit penalties before agreeing.
If you have trouble decoding it, find someone who can help you! Pasting the contract into ChatGPT is a good place to start.
📖Step 3: Read your quotes
Your quotes should be in. Before opening them, read the short Phrasebook at the end of Your First Heat Pump Guidebook (pages 29-31). It will get you ready for any HVAC jargon you might see on the quote.
Here are some basic terms:
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BTUs (British Thermal Units) — Like calories or kilowatts, BTUs are a scientific way to measure energy. Heat pumps are often rated in BTUs—the higher the number, the more powerful the heat pump.
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Tons — Heat pumps come in different sizes. They are usually sized by the “ton.” This doesn’t refer to the weight of the outdoor unit! This refers to how much cooling and heating power it has compared to a ton of ice. Heat pump sizes increase in 0.5-ton increments. Most Toronto homes need a 2, 2.5, or 3-ton heat pump. Tons and BTUs are interchangeable — there's 12,000BTUs in a ton, so a 24,000BTU heat pump would be a 2-ton heat pump.
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SEER — stands for the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio, and it’s like the fuel efficiency of a car. A higher SEER rating indicates a more efficient heat pump that uses less energy and results in lower utility bills (but the upfront cost will be higher). Finding the right SEER rating for you depends on your budget and needs—your contractor can help you find the right balance of performance and cost.
If your quote feels like it's written in German, post it on the Home Retrofit Forum on Facebook. You’ll get fast answers to your tricky questions. AI can also help here as well!
Once you feel comfortable, commit to a contractor, check on their references, and pay the deposit.
📝Step 4: Install checklist + maintenance
When your contractor shows up, run through Your First Heat Pump Guidebook's install checklist (pages 25 + 26) with them. This is especially important in an emergency—they should welcome your interest in their work!
The most important thing is to make sure your contractors comes back for “commissioning” — that’s when they fine-tune your heat pump a couple of weeks after it's installed.
Your new heat pump will take a couple of hours to get your home back to a comfortable room temperature, so don't ditch the popsicles just yet.
Finally, complete the payment and let us know how it went! If you had a positive contractor experience, we'd love to share it with others. You can also host a fun and informative heat pump party. These parties are your chance to show off your new heat pump to your neighbours. Seeing the technology working in homes like theirs makes things click! Our Heat Pump Party article has all the details.