Rebates make heat pumps more affordable, cut power usage and your carbon footprint

Rebates make heat pumps more affordable, cut power usage and your carbon footprint


Rebates and tax credits are making heat pumps and other appliances more accessible to New Yorkers eager to save money and help the environment.

Buy a heat pump and you can collect a tax credit worth $2,000, or 30 percent of the cost. This applies to all households regardless of income.

The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, now in effect, offers billions of federal dollars to help people who want to improve their homes’ energy efficiency. Much of the program is aimed at helping moderate- and low-income people make these upgrades.

In many cases, you can qualify for a rebate as much as 50 percent to 100 percent if you replace an existing air conditioner, stove or other approved appliance, The New York Times notes.

This also applies if you replace an air conditioner with a heat pump. The replacements must be Energy-Star certified, meaning they meet federal standards.

This online tool can explain what applies to you, based on your income and zip code.

In addition, various programs in New York offer rebates and assistance.

For local programs, see  https://www.nyserda.ny.gov/All-Programs/home-energy-efficiency-upgrades

Heat pumps work

Today’s heat pumps are a far cry from the earliest models, which struggled in cold weather.

Modern heat pumps will heat a home even when outdoor temperatures drop to 31 degrees below zero Fahrenheit!

“These appliances run on electricity and move heat, instead of creating it, and so can be three to five times more efficient than traditional gas or electrical resistance heaters,” The Times said.

“For a lot of people, a heat pump is going to be their biggest personal impact,” Sage Briscoe, the federal senior policy manager at Rewiring America, a clean-energy think tank, told The Times.

Eco-friendly, too

Estimates show that a heat pump can shave $100 to $1,200 off your annual heating bill, and prevent anywhere from 1 to 8 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

Lighthouse technicians have years of experience installing and maintaining heat pumps. Call us for more information if you live in Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan or Long Island.