East Vancouver gas furnace replaced with a ducted heat pump

The challenge

The homeowners had an 18-year-old gas furnace nearing the end of its life. Heating bills were climbing, and with no air conditioning the upper floors were uncomfortably hot during recent summer heatwaves.

They wanted to reuse their existing ductwork and get efficient heating plus reliable cooling, with provincial and federal rebates where they applied.

How the install went

1. Assessment and sizing. A home energy assessment and heat load calculation set the system size, and a 3-ton variable-speed ducted unit was selected to work with the existing ducts.
2. Furnace removal. The old gas furnace was safely disconnected and removed, the gas line capped, and the mechanical room prepared for the new indoor air handler.
3. Outdoor unit. The outdoor unit went on a newly poured concrete pad at the side of the house, placed to respect Vancouver noise rules and property setbacks.
4. Line set. New copper line sets were run between the indoor and outdoor units and brazed and torqued for a leak-tight seal.
5. Electrical and controls. A new circuit was run to the outdoor unit and the system was wired to a smart thermostat so the homeowners can set schedules from their phones.

The results

• Year-round comfort. The home holds a steady 21°C in winter and now has whole-home air conditioning in summer.
• Lower heating costs. The homeowners report winter heating costs down by roughly 30%.
• Rebates. The homeowners qualified for CleanBC's income-qualified heat pump rebate, which took a meaningful bite out of the upfront cost. We confirmed their eligibility before work started.
• Quieter running. The variable-speed compressor runs at low output most of the time, which is much quieter than the old furnace cycling on and off.