For a long time I simply thought I wouldn’t be allowed to have a heat pump.
My area gets really cold in the wintertime. How the heat pump works is by moving heat energy from outside to inside for a heating effect. It uses the clean, fresh outdoor air. It is extremely energy smart doing this. It can also pump out the hot air inside the house to create a cooling effect. You get both cooling and heating with this system. Moving heat energy is where I would struggle though. My area gets to be in the -20s. I would worry about the heat pump no longer being efficient. It is only meant for temperatures as low as 40 degrees. After that, there simply is no heat energy to move. I found online that you can pair a heat pump with a gas furnace. This is called a hybrid system or a dual fuel system. The machine runs the heat pump whenever possible. It is electric based and will be your air conditioner. The heating function will work until it gets too cold. Once my weather drops into the colder temps, then the gas furnace gets tagged in. I don’t have to hit a button or do anything special. The dual fuel system automatically makes the change for me. It changes from electric to gas seamlessly and I never go without the right amount of heating in my home. That is at least what I read online. I have yet to buy this system but I really want to.