this post was submitted on 31 Mar 2024
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I don't think they are called something else, but they aren't common in the Midwest US. Most households are using central heating and air conditioning. I've seen mini splits before in Europe, but didn't know that's what they were called
Yeah it's rather unfortunate that heat pumps aren't more common in the Midwest. As someone formerly from Michigan, I know it gets cold, but heat pumps can operate below 0 easily without aux heat nowadays and you can get gas or electric aux heat to supplement when you get below the operating temps of the heat pump.
Change is also hard for humans, so companies still throw in forced air systems that burn natural gas or propane.
They're also not common in my area (Rockies), and they would probably be a really good fit here. Instead, everyone has central heating and a big AC unit, with one one being on at a given time. But it doesn't get cold enough for a heat pump to be ineffective, yet we still separate them for some reason.