benleach

this is my first winter in a heat pump house. I need to understand more about how it works. Its been OK for a while but now that the temp is 0 or below it isn't keeping up. I have turned on emerg. heat but still no luck to keep it at 68*. Does the outside unit having snow all over it indicate a problem? Is it froze up? Is the outside fan supposed to come on?

flashheatingand

Heat pumps are great for mild cold weather. However they are designed to keep up with the heat loss of the house. The limitation is that there isn't a lot of heat in 0 degree air so the appliance cannot keep up with the heat loss. During the hard cold months, the electric heat will be your primary heat source. It may get pricey during these months, and lots of people use wood heat during this period. but when the temps stay around 35-50 degrees, they are a great heat source.

The outdoor fan may not be running right at times because the outdoor coil may be in a de-frost mode. That is another story. If you think something is amiss, it wouldn't hurt to have someone check it out for you and explain how the system works.

Willis15

If this is your primary source of heat look at your electrical supply available and ensure that you resistive heat equal in btu rating to your heat pump. In cold climate you might as well turn it into emergency heat mode and use as an elctric furnance. I grew up in a home with one in the Mid -West.