Don't think I need to summarize this one. This is bad news for everyone.

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[–] 12 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 child)

Heat pumps work at >100% thermal efficiency.

Air conditioners dont.

An air conditioner is a heat pump... That just works in one direction. It uses refrigeration just the same.

They both rely on creating a thermal gradient between two heat exchangers. And they are both negatively affected by extreme temperature gaps.

The heat exchanger facing outside with a heat pump must be colder than ambient temperature by a reasonable margin. The opposite goes for an AC. These qualities break down in extreme ranges for typical hardware.

This also, as expected, reduces the efficiency.

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