Heat Pump or Electric Heat??

[Sam Morris]

Inspecting a house today built in 1998.. The house appears to have a heat pump Goodman/Janitrol Model# CPKE-24 serial #9802438159, but i wasn't sure. The refrigerant suction lines had the low and high pressure lines present. The thermostat was a digital hunter, but it didn't have auxiliary heat button present. I thought that all heat pumps must have a auxiliary mode. The compressor fan was running during the heating cycle with a 30* differential between the return verses the register. Can anyone help...

[Garry Blankenship]

I'm obviously not your man. The only difinitive thing I'm seeing is your furnace has a drain line, so it's not electric heat. The numbers on the outside unit should tell you what it is.

[John Kogel]

The indoor unit looks like it could be part of a heat pump system and you say there was heat, so that makes it a heat pump.

Does the house have any other heat source?
For an auxiliary electric heat source beside that indoor unit, I will look for a large electrical supply cable. The electric furnace part will generally be 60 to 125 amps, so the supply cable is obvious. Check in the electrical panel for a large breaker other than the typical 30 amp or so for the heat pump outdoor unit..
Of course they also would need to be using the correct thermostat for electric auxiliary heat to work.

[Raymond Wand]

Appears to be electrical resistance back up. Note the electrical panel attached to the right side of furnace.

[Dom D'Agostino]

Did you look for a reversing valve? (stock photos attached for examples)

Did you see an electric heat kit installed in the AHU, if so was it labeled and/or working?

Likely the thermostat will engage emergency heat when you set it for more than 2 degrees higher then current temp, with or without a EM setting or switch.

[Rick Cantrell]

The photo of the circuit board shows two switches;
1 is set at "Heat Pump System"
the other is set at "Electric Furnace"

Based only on this it seems you have a heat pump with electric resistant heat for backup.

[Scott Patterson]

I'm obviously not your man. The only difinitive thing I'm seeing is your furnace has a drain line, so it's not electric heat. The numbers on the outside unit should tell you what it is.

That is the condensate drain line coming out of the evaporator cabinet. You are looking at the air handler which has the evap coil and electric furnace in it.

Based only on the thermostat I'm with Rick that it is setup for a heatpump, but then this is only the thermostat and not the unit itself we are looking at. I would say it is a good chance that the home has a heatpump system.

Did the emergency/supplemental heat turn on?

[Sam Morris]

Inspecting a house today built in 1998.. The house appears to have a heat pump Goodman/Janitrol Model# CPKE-24 serial #9802438159, but i wasn't sure. The refrigerant suction lines had the low and high pressure lines present. The thermostat was a digital hunter, but it didn't have auxiliary heat button present. I thought that all heat pumps must have a auxiliary mode. The compressor fan was running during the heating cycle with a 30* differential between the return verses the register. Can anyone help...
Thanks for all the Information>>>>

[Bob Spermo]

Sam

Look in the condenser for the reversing valve. Do not use the thermostat as your "acid test" because I have seen heat pumps with the incorrect thermostat installed.

[Darrel Hood]

Set the thermostat in the heating mode and select a temperature which will cause the heat system to come on. When it does, if the condenser outside is running, it is a heat pump. Its a few steps, but it eliminates all the doubts.

[c francis]

Did you check the breaker box? For a breaker big enough for aux heat?? Possibly 50 amp. Also should have power wires to where the heater sits in the plenum or just below. Also could take the front cover of and look.

[ROBERT YOUNG]

You seem to know your way around a HVAC, but what you are looking at is an air-handler unit.
Essentially a furnace cabinet/plenum with the evaporation coils mounted inside.
Common in newer homes and replacement systems in my neck of the woods.It depends where you are located.

Hope this link helps.
Sorry for the jocularity.
https://www.nachi.org/forum/f20/heat-pump-electric-heat-71287/

[Mark Reinmiller]

Sometimes people install improper thermostats on heat pumps. Many of the newer electronic thermostats can be used for a heat pump, but the correct option must be selected when it is installed.

30 degrees is on the high side, unless the outside temperature is warm. Otherwise, this can mean restricted airflow or some electric resistance heat may be on. I always check the amperage to the air-handler when running in the heat pump mode to make sure the electric resistance heat is not on. Otherwise you really do not know if the heat pump is functioning properly.