I have a new home that is heated by 2 stage NGAS furnace (Duel fuel Heat pump + NGAS Furnace) with separate HRV system in Nova Scotia.
My basement is partially below grade, open concept and fully finished.
We have had issues with our heating system over the Winter and as a result have been only able to use Emergency Heat on our furnace. The problem I'm having is my basement is freezing (I set the house at 22/23 celcius and basement is usually around 16 celcius). I do not see any cold air return vents, and only see 2 air exchange vents on the ceiling.
My question is, should there not also be a separate heating vent from the air exchange vents? I have turned on the air exchange (on warmer winter days) and feel some air coming out of these, but not much.
I've had other homes that have had heating vents in the ceiling and cold air return at the floor level in my basement, but this is my first home with a heat pump. (When I asked the real estate agent for the builder, I was told the round vents on the ceiling were the heat, and no need for separate heat vent due to having a heat pump (FYI - we cannot use the heat pump if it drops below zero & the furnace will not respond for aux heat).
Thank you for any help you can provide.
Daisy
First the air vents, yes, there should be separate supply air runs (and RA) in the basement.
Next, the heat pump. With the setup you have there, it sounds like the wiring or control system is not installed correctly. The way it should work is, the heat pump should run on the warmer days, it should shut off based on outdoor temp, usually around 27-28*F. When the temp falls below 27-28, the system should run fully on NG furnace. This should happen automatically, the fact that the furnace only runs on emergency tells me something is wired incorrectly.
Thank you for the information, I have a feeling i will have to hire my own heating guy at my own expense to fight with my builder and his 'guy'. Same guy who installed (and destroyed) my tankless hot water system 😏