Questions, answered plainly.

Cold-climate models do. They are built to keep heating well below freezing, and Efficiency Maine says many perform down to -22 degrees F. What matters for your house is the equipment's published output at your coldest design temperature, so we size from that number and not from the model's name.

The outdoor unit delivers less heat as the air gets colder. A system sized from a load calculation covers the house on the design day. If you keep your boiler or furnace as backup, it takes over only if the heat pump falls behind, and we set the thermostats so you can see which one is running.

Not always. Some homeowners keep it for the first winter, or for one wing the heat pump does not reach, and some retire it after the first season. We tell you which fits your house at the visit, and we do not remove anything you want to keep.

The one your load calculation says, not the biggest one that fits. We measure the house, note the insulation and windows, and calculate heat loss room by room. Oversized equipment cycles on and off, and an undersized system leans on the backup.

Efficiency Maine runs the state's heat pump rebates, and the amount depends on the system and on household income. We are a registered vendor, so we check what applies at the visit and show the rebate as its own line on the quote. Rules change, so the program's page is the final word.

We tell you before we book it whether the visit has a fee and whether it is credited toward the work if you hire us. You get a walk through the house, a look at the boiler room and the electrical panel, and a written quote with the equipment model named. The pricing page has the full list.

Yes. The electrical work needs a permit, and the quote lists the permits the job needs. Your town's inspector signs off before we call the job finished.

The manufacturer warrants the equipment, and the terms depend on registering it, which we do for you. Our own workmanship terms come in writing with the quote, with what they cover and what they leave out.

We mount outdoor units on a wall bracket or a raised stand, above where drifts and roof runoff land. Keep a path clear around it after a storm. A little steam or frost on the unit in winter is normal; it is the unit clearing its own coil.

A heat pump needs power to run, and so does an oil or propane burner. If outages worry you, ask us about a generator or battery connection when we plan the electrical work.

Yes. Ductless mini-splits heat rooms without any ductwork, and a multi-zone system can serve a whole house from one outdoor unit. The mini-splits page explains how we choose the number of indoor units.

Get everyone outside into fresh air and call 911 or the fire department from outside. Do not go back in to find the cause. Once the house is cleared, call us if the alarm came from your oil or propane equipment. A heat pump makes no carbon monoxide, but a boiler or furnace that stays as backup can.