The Martins were sold. The install was clean. That August, the house felt like a wine cellar. Their electric bill dropped 30% compared to the window units. Mark posted a smug photo on Facebook: “Go big or go home. 22 SEER. #Winning.”
Don’t be Mark. Don’t chase a high SEER number like a trophy. Match the rating to your climate. A heat pump is a year-round appliance. Judge it by its coldest performance, not its hottest boast. seer ratings for heat pumps
“SEER is the gold standard,” Dave said, tapping the brochure. “That’s 22 Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. Your old unit was a 14. You’ll save a fortune.” The Martins were sold
Mark asked Mr. Chen, “But isn’t 18 SEER worse than my 22?” Their electric bill dropped 30% compared to the window units
is a measure of cooling output divided by electric input over a typical summer. Higher SEER (16–20+) is great for hot climates like Florida or Texas.
Mark sold his 22 SEER unit on Facebook Marketplace at a loss. He replaced it with an 18 SEER / 12.5 HSPF cold-climate model. His summer bills rose $15/month. His winter bills dropped $400/month.
The Martin’s 22 SEER unit had a terrible (Heating Seasonal Performance Factor)—only 8.2. It was a cooling machine that could sort-of heat. For Vermont winters, they needed a cold-climate heat pump with an HSPF above 10 and a low-temperature rating. SEER had nothing to do with it. Act III: The Neighbor’s Counter-Story Across the street lived the Chens. They’d installed a heat pump the same week. Their unit was only 18 SEER —four points lower than Mark’s.