The weather in my local area is a year round challenge. The summers aren’t all that long, but we experience temperatures into the high eighties and the humidity is downright brutal. Our winters are excessively long-lasting with below-freezing conditions lingering for six to eight months. We aren’t surprised when the temperature drops into the negative digits. We can expect around four feet of snow accumulation. The spring and fall seasons are unpredictable, bringing a mix of rain, wind, sleet, thunderstorms, humidity and hail. For the majority of the year, we run either the heating or the cooling system. Temperature control requires a great deal of energy and expense. Because of the severity of the conditions, I’ve invested into a dual fuel system. The initial setup was far more expensive than conventional heating/cooling solutions. I have a forced air, natural gas furnace partnered with an electric, air-source heat pump. The heat pump carries the majority of the workload. It provides effective cooling and dehumidification during the warmer months. When the weather cools off, the heat pump reverses the flow of refrigerant to pull ambient heat out of the outdoor air and pump it indoors. By moving existing heat rather than burning fossil fuels to create new heat, the heat pump is very environmentally friendly. It doesn’t generate any carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide or greenhouse gases. There are no fumes or hot surfaces and the operation is wonderfully safe, clean and energy efficient. It costs a lot less to run than the furnace. It simply can’t handle the year round workload. The furnace is powerful enough to handle temperatures down to negative twenty degrees. The dual fuel system automatically switches between whichever system is most effective and efficient to operate at any given time.