01/25/2026
Heat pumps pull warm air from the outside and use it to heat your home in the winter. Even if it’s below zero, heat pumps can pull heat from the outside air. Heat pumps use a smaller amount of electricity to operate, which makes them less expensive to run than a gas furnace. Typically, heat pumps are partnered with a natural gas furnace option so that the furnace can kick on when the temperature drops below a heat pump’s threshold.
Heat pumps will often switch into defrost mode when the weather gets icier. The defrost mode helps keep ice from forming on the outdoor components of the system and heat the coils back up to the correct temperature. However, if the defrost system cycles on too often or fails to turn on at all, this can be a sign that the heat pump is frozen and faulty.
We recommend that during these ice storms you turn the outdoors off and run only the indoor heat strips or furnace gas heat. Call Value HVAC Services at 859-230-4548 if your system fails you.