Heat pump vs Furnace in Knox County, Maine
When a heat pump makes sense
A heat pump makes sense if you want cooling in the summer along with heat the rest of the year, and you're set on staying off natural gas. Get a cold-climate model, since standard heat pumps lose heating power once temperatures drop toward what Knox County sees on a typical winter night. Expect to run it nine months of the year, and know that at Maine's prices, it will cost more to heat with than gas.
When a furnace makes sense
If your home already has a gas line, or you're deciding what to install where nights sit around 16°F all winter, a furnace holds its output no matter how cold it gets outside. It costs at least 25% less to heat with here than a heat pump, at Maine prices. It won't cool your home in summer, so you'd need a separate system for that.
When a heat pump makes sense
A heat pump makes sense if you want cooling in the summer along with heat the rest of the year, and you're set on staying off natural gas. Get a cold-climate model, since standard heat pumps lose heating power once temperatures drop toward what Knox County sees on a typical winter night. Expect to run it nine months of the year, and know that at Maine's prices, it will cost more to heat with than gas.
When a furnace makes sense
If your home already has a gas line, or you're deciding what to install where nights sit around 16°F all winter, a furnace holds its output no matter how cold it gets outside. It costs at least 25% less to heat with here than a heat pump, at Maine prices. It won't cool your home in summer, so you'd need a separate system for that.
Heat pump
- Runs on
- Electricity
- What it does
- Heats and cools
- Tax credit
- No federal tax credit since the end of 2025
Sources: U.S. Department of Energy · Internal Revenue Code
Furnace
- Runs on
- Natural gas
- What it does
- Heats only
- Tax credit
- No federal tax credit since the end of 2025
Sources: U.S. Department of Energy · Internal Revenue Code
Furnace wins in Knox County.
Winter nights here average 16°F, and gas heat costs at least 25% less than a heat pump at Maine prices.
If your home has no gas line to tap into, a cold-climate heat pump will still heat it through those 16-degree nights, and cool it in summer too.
Find a contractor| Compared on | Heat pump | Furnace |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to run here | Costs more to run | At least 25% less to run |
| What it does | Heats and cools | Heats only |
| Homes in New England that heat with one | 1.7% | 54.8% |
| Handles a 16°F night | Standard models lose heating power in the cold; cold-climate models are built for it | Yes |
Sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Energy, NOAA
When a heat pump makes sense
A heat pump makes sense if you want cooling in the summer along with heat the rest of the year, and you're set on staying off natural gas. Get a cold-climate model, since standard heat pumps lose heating power once temperatures drop toward what Knox County sees on a typical winter night. Expect to run it nine months of the year, and know that at Maine's prices, it will cost more to heat with than gas.
When a furnace makes sense
If your home already has a gas line, or you're deciding what to install where nights sit around 16°F all winter, a furnace holds its output no matter how cold it gets outside. It costs at least 25% less to heat with here than a heat pump, at Maine prices. It won't cool your home in summer, so you'd need a separate system for that.
A Knox County contractor will price both against your own house, your ductwork and your panel.
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