heat pump gas consumption eating me up!

[CMil]

Help, please! I rent a house in Missouri that has a heat pump for cooling and primary heat, with LP gas backup heat. My landlord's HVAC contractor serviced the unit this past summer to get it to cool, then came back when the weather turned cool to address a heating problem. On that visit, he bypassed the heat pump, and the only heat I have is from the LP gas. I think the unit is using WAY too much gas to heat a 2000 s.f. earth-berm house, and would like to know if there's anything I can do to get the heat pump back as primary heat. The contractor said he removed a "fossil fuel control board" when he was here last, and said that in order to make the heat pump heat, he would have to replace something electrical in the outside unit, but I don't remember what it was. I do remember it had something to do with making the thermostat "talk" to the outside unit. BTW, this is a York heat pump, and the controller he removed was a Nordyne unit, I'm pretty sure. This may be kind of vague to start, but I think I can give more information as needed. Thanks in advance for any help available. - Chris

[Ed Imeduc]

The contractor said he removed a "fossil fuel control board" when he was here last, and said that in order to make the heat pump heat, he would have to replace something electrical in the outside unit, but I don't remember what it was. I do remember it had something to do with making the thermostat "talk" to the outside unit.
When you have a heat pump with a back up gas or oil furnace. there is a control out side and it is set to just what temp the heat pump will shut off and the other furnace will turn on like here the LP..
Up at Lake of the ozarks all we sell are heatpumps now. That is on UE power .Dont know what you have there.
You could go to http://www.warmair.net and compare fuel cost for where you are. Post back if we can help

ED :coffee:

[scottg]

I am a firm believer in heatpumps if they are used for the right setup.

At 37o degrees heatpumps need help from a auxilary heater.

Set up right the aux. heat should work with no problems.
The problem starts when the servicer knows more about taking features of and getting some heat than getting the controls that are needed to work properly.
Thus that is your problem.
I would suspect that you need a fossil fuel control and a outdoor thermostat to regulate when your aux. heat ie... gas furnace should run.
Letting your Landlord know that you rented a house that had a heatpump with gas backup heat is what you wanted not a house that had just gas heat and that you would like it to run properly.