Gibson heat pump prices, pros and cons

Gibson heat pumps can be an effective and efficient cooling and heating solution for your home

Gibson heat pumpA growing number of consumers are finding that there can be extended efficiencies in heating and cooling a home through the use of a heat pump. In many parts of the country, heat pumps are proving to be the most efficient way to both heat and cool a home. While perhaps not as well known as other companies, Gibson is one brand of heat pump you should take a closer look at if you are considering a heat pump for your residential HVAC needs.

Get free quotes on heat pumps today!

About Gibson

People may be unfamiliar with the Gibson brand of heat pumps, but they are worth taking a closer look at. The original namesake company has been around since the turn of the 20th Century when brothers Frank and John Gibson started a refrigeration company in Greenville, Michigan. Today, Gibson is licensed, marketed and franchised under the Nordyne family of products, a family that also includes better-known brands such as Frigidaire, Maytag and Westinghouse.

Under the Gibson brand flag, consumers will find:

  • Air conditioners
  • Gas furnaces
  • Heat pumps
  • Air handlers and coils
  • Packaged systems
  • Parts and accessories

About heat pumps

To truly understand what you’re comparing when you stack up Gibson heat pumps against other modes of heating and cooling your home, it’s probably a good idea to understand what a heat pump does. In essence, a heat pump transfers air from one space to another. In the case of using a heat pump for heating purposes, it’s transferring (pumping) the warmer air from one space to a space where there is cooler air. In the case of a cooling function, it’s pumping the cooler air from one space into the spaces (rooms) where it’s warmer.

There are two, major types of heat pumps:

  • Geothermal heat pumps – these units rely on the relatively constant temperature of the earth to draw warmer air in the cooler months and cooler air in the warmer months. These types of heat pumps can prove to be less efficient in regions where severe weather swings occur or where it gets cold enough for the earth to freeze.
  • Air-source heat pumps – are units that rely on a separate source to generate heat or coolant to produce the desired air flow (usually a gas or electric fired coolant system.)

Heat pumps are evaluated and graded on two efficiency scales: one for heating and one for cooling. The heating scale used to measure a heat pump is referred to as the Heating Seasonal Performance Factor (HSPF) and heat pumps that deliver HSPF rating between 8.5 and 10 are among the most efficient. The cooling scale used to grade heat pumps is similar to the one used for air conditioners, the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) rating. The federal government requires that any air conditioning unit currently sold in the U.S. deliver a SEER rating of at least 13 and for any unit, the higher the SEER rating, the more efficient and cost-effective it will be.

Gibson heat pump options

Gibson doesn’t distinguish between separate “lines” of heat pumps. Instead, the heat pumps made and sold under the Gibson rubric are distinguished by the performance standards delivered by each unit. Gibson essentially sells five different heat pumps for residential customers. They range from the entry-level, single-stage heat pump delivering the minimum required 13 SEER rating and an HSPF performance rating of 8.0, up through Gibson’s two-stage heat pump unit that promises SEER ratings topping 16 and HSPF ratings of 9.0.

Gibson offers what it calls its 1-Year Quality Pledge for all of its heat pumps (except the 13-SEER single-unit model.) This offers homeowners full replacement for either the compressor and/or the heat exchanger should either fail for any reason within the first year of installation. All Gibson heat pump units come with a limited 10-year warranty on all parts. Warranties are only valid if consumers properly register the product within the required timeline and if a licensed, registered HVAC professional completes the installation.

Pricing

Determining an exact price for a Gibson heat pump is not an easy endeavor. The company does not list prices on its website and even if you could find a catalog of suggested wholesale or retail prices for its units, that wouldn’t give you a complete or accurate picture. One reason is that what you pay will vary depending on what part of the country you live in. Another important factor in determining your costs for any Gibson heat pump is that what contractors charge for installation projects varies widely. (Remember, for your warranty to be effective, you will have to use a licensed contractor certified to install and work on Gibson products.)

A broad review of websites and publications that track and report on HVAC systems generally places Gibson heat pumps in the “more affordable” class of products. One way to get a better picture of what you can expect to pay for any specific Gibson heat pump is to solicit estimates from local HVAC contractors. It is always a good idea to get some competitive, comparative bids and estimates from contractors in your area.

Reply! can help you out here by getting you a few installation estimates before you purchase a unit or hire a contractor. This will give you a more accurate idea of the total costs for a Gibson heat pump.

Free Quotes! Click here to get your heat pump estimates now!