A heating installation is a great idea for customers who are looking to add to their homes or replace their old systems. In fact, the situation is absolutely perfect for a lot of people who are looking to save money and raise their efficiency levels, since the technology has reached a pretty remarkable point.
Heat pumps, which used to not be a very big contender here in Cedar Rapids, are suddenly becoming a good investment for a lot of homeowners. Their sleek design, energy efficiency, and powerful cold-weather technology is giving homeowners another choice aside from the usual.
Let’s talk about your options when it comes to heating installation in Cedar Rapids, IA.
Furnaces
Furnaces are still a great option in 2025, especially because of some recent advancements in making them even more efficient than they were before. Furnaces have two big pros going for them:
- They rely on natural gas. This is abundant and controlled by your local municipality. That means it’s relatively affordable and sometimes even works when there’s a power outage. Natural gas is clean burning, and highly efficient, meaning that the vast majority of gas that’s burned gets turned into heat. Depending on the AFUE rating of the system (annual fuel utilization efficiency), you can reach efficiency levels of 95% of the gas being turned into heat!
- They’re affordable. Gas furnaces are still, to this day, some of the most affordable heating systems on the market. And their electric counterparts, electric furnaces, are even more accessible to families that just need effective heat.
Heat Pumps
Heat pumps have grown in popularity and efficiency in recent years. They used to be a niche system that was both too expensive for regular consumers, and too ineffective to use in colder climates like ours. However, due to some amazing manufacturing advancements, heat pumps can now work in cold environments.
For example, heat pumps can run in “defrost mode,” where they use the residual heat inside your home on a cold day to run in reverse, warming up the system so it can continue to pull heat from the atmosphere and bring it into your home. This might sound inefficient, but this is actually way more efficient than other heating methods due to the fact that it moves heat instead of creating it!
We’d highly advise that any homeowners looking to invest in a new heating system should at least take a look at heat pumps. Specific cold-weather heat pumps are becoming very popular, and they’ll be perfectly suited for air conditioning during our hot summers!
Ductless Mini Splits
What if a standard, centralized heat pump isn’t a good idea for your home? Well, you can go ductless!
These systems operate with air handlers instead of a centralized system and air ducts. Ductless mini splits are perfectly suited for homes that are changing and adding on new spaces since you can install a new mini split in certain rooms that might not feel comfortable enough.
And yes, before you ask, these systems are just as energy-efficient as standard heat pumps, and they can even be more efficient! They don’t risk losing heat to faulty air ducts since they directly pump the heat into your rooms.
At Dalton Plumbing, Heating, Cooling, Electric and Fireplaces, Inc., your comfort is our promise! To set up an appointment in the Cedar Rapids area, give us a call at the number above, email customerservice@daltonphc.com or schedule an appointment online.