Non-Communicating Heat Pump Model Purchase Advice
Good day to all. Long time reader, first time poster. I have a 1913 home in Winnipeg Canada that I have been working to bring into the 21st century. 2.5 storeys plus basement (600 sq ft per floor plus 300 in the top half storey/attic/home theatre.
Envelope is tight now with upgraded windows and wrapped with 2 of rigid insulation. Added an HRV last fall.
House has no central air conditioning and we have made out ok with a 14k BTU standalone floor unit on the top floor with intake/exhaust out a window (although the racket from that unit will not be missed).
Really considering a cold climate heat pump if I can integrate it into my system (rather than just an AC unit).
Furnace is a 15 year old Lennox G61MPV-36-070 (61k BTU, 2-stage burner, variable speed DC blower). Works great without issue (fan has circulated air at 494 cfm for over 130k hours).
With the 2.5 storey + basement we saw considerable heat stacking, so last year we installed dedicated duct work to each floor, plus Honeywell HZ322 (3-zone) panel and dedicated tstats and dampers for each level (basement is currently fed as a dump zone, plus variable bypass damper to return set at 0.7 w.g.).
Our small furnace now works even more efficiently and with the focused, zoned heating (we rarely use the basement or 3rd floor), a heat pump may be a good heating option for the transition months, as an option above central air alone.
I really like the Honeywell tstats and zoning controls. And since they only went in a short time ago, the HP will need to integrate into the existing setup (rather than upgrading everything to include communicating components, incl the newly installed HZ432 zone panel for the HP).
I have spent many hours browsing trying to find a heat pump that meets the following (in a slight order of preference),
1. Non-communicating. Needs to work with the existing set up (with the zoning and the variable speed blower, I dont require anything else).
2. 3-stage, modulating (2-stage would be ideal to work with my non-communicating system, but there is also a local HP rebate program that stipulates a minimum of 3 or more stages modulating, or fully variable).
3. Outdoor space is an issue. Side discharge would be ideal.
I am open to all brands and models. As I said, I have spent quite some time looking online, and although I have seen some (obsolete?) models that might fit the bill, I really hope there are still some options available. Qualifying for the heat pump rebate would be great but if it needs to only be a 2-stage unit that will be ok with me too.
If anyone can point me in a brand/model direction I would very much appreciate that. Thanks!