King County kicks off heat pump installation program for vulnerable households | king5.com

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SEATTLE — King County leaders are pushing to expand a clean energy option to heat homes and reduce carbon emissions.

The Seattle area has an ideal climate for heat pumps. However, only 29% of homes in the county have them.

Making the change over to electric is costly. A new rebate program is funding new heating and cooling systems for dozens of adult care homes. The goal is to help the most vulnerable first.

KING 5 followed along for the first installation at a home in Shoreline.

"This is going to replace the gas furnace in the house," owner of Airganic HVAC Gal Zamir said, pointing at the new air handler.

The aging furnace is broken so a crew from AirGanic is replacing it with an all-new heating and cooling system. The adult family home, where several seniors receive full-time care, was in danger of shutting down. The owner said it was because the fix would be too costly.

The heat pump installation and electric upgrade at this home costs about $30,000. The county is completely covering the cost.

Funding comes from the Climate Commitment Act, which voters upheld in November's election. However, state lawmakers in Olympia face budget decisions this spring that could slash the rebate program's funding by more than half. The Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates program received $80 million but is currently slated at $30 million in the proposed capital budget, according to the county.

"We're hoping it's at that level it was in previous years so we can continue to expand this program to more places around the county," King County Energize Program Manager Neil Larsen said.

Heat pumps offer several advantages: they improve air quality, reduce carbon emissions by eliminating fossil fuel dependency and can eventually lower electric bills. The technology works by using refrigerant to absorb and release air, providing both heating and cooling capabilities.

"Heat pumps are a lot more efficient than a lot of other traditional heating systems," Zamir said.

Despite these benefits, high installation costs make the green technology inaccessible to many middle-class and low-income families without assistance.

"Programs like this help people afford this, that couldn't normally," Zamir said.

The current funding will enable the county to install 50 to 60 more heat pumps at residential adult living facilities through the rest of this year.