Definition
The balance point is the outdoor temperature at which a heat pump's heating capacity equals a home's heat loss. Above it, the heat pump can heat the house alone; below it, supplemental heat such as electric strips or a furnace must make up the difference. It depends on both the equipment's capacity and the home's insulation and air sealing.
Also called: Thermal balance point
Why it matters to you.
Most Central Kentucky winter hours are above freezing, so a balance point set well below typical winter lows means backup heat runs mainly during cold snaps. In a dual-fuel home, the balance point is one of the inputs for where the furnace takes over.
Practical guidance.
Ask your installer what balance point the proposed system was designed around and how backup heat is staged below it. Air sealing, attic insulation and duct repairs lower your home's heat loss, which lowers the balance point with the same equipment; calculating it is contractor work.
About this definition
Written by the Feistritzer Heating & Air Conditioning team — family owned and operated in Danville since 1976, Kentucky HVAC license M02584. Definitions inform; a whole-system diagnosis in your home decides.