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NeverPlayF6 t1_j19nlsu wrote

Reply to comment by Bunslow in Why do we use phase change refrigerants? by samskiter

If your residential electric heating is resistive heating, then there isn't much difference between a resistive stove (the ones with the heating elements) and a heater, if there is a difference at all. In real terms, though- heating your whole house from a single point is probably less efficient due to a lack of air flow and distribution of that heat.

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Bunslow t1_j19yxij wrote

well by default i assumed it wasn't resistive, but it could be for all i know. but i assumed that since heat pumps are more efficient that it would be a heat pump

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SufferingIdiots t1_j1a10db wrote

Do you have an outdoor compressor/heat exchanger? If not it may just be an electric furnace that heats with resistive elements.

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NeverPlayF6 t1_j1dh202 wrote

A lot of residential buildings have resistive heating. Baseboard radiators, cable ceiling, regular forced air heating are all potentially resistive heating.

Regarding how close residential heat pumps can get to 3x the efficiency of resistive heating- that's about where they are right now. Depending on the temperature at the exchanger, a bit better than 3x is not uncommon. But they become less efficient outside of optimal working temps.

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