Heat Pumps Were Supposed to Help Save the Planet. But They’ve Run Into a Bump.
22nd October 2024
Sales of solar panels, batteries and electric vehicles have soared over the last few years — helping to slow global warming and take dangerous pollutants out of the atmosphere.
“Why are you spreading sawdust around?”
“Keeps the elephants away.”
“But there aren’t any elephants in Brooklyn.”
“See how effective it is?”
But one technology critical to fighting climate change is lagging, thanks to a combination of high interest rates, rising costs, misinformation and the cycle of home construction. Adoption of heat pumps, one of the primary ways to cut emissions from buildings, has slowed in the United States and stalled in Europe, endangering the switch to clean energy.
Oh noes!
Homeowners may also run into trouble when trying to find contractors to install heat pumps. Barton James, the president and CEO of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America, says many contractors don’t have training on how to properly install heat pumps; if they install them incorrectly, the ensuing problems can sour consumers on the technology.
Oh, ya think?
In the United States, low gas prices also make the economics of heat pumps more challenging. Gas is around three times cheaper than electricity — while heat pumps make up most of that ground with efficiency, they aren’t the most cost-effective option for every household.
Being ‘climate-friendly’ is easy … if you’re rich.