For all the benefits of a ductless heat pump, there was always one caveat:

Their efficiency can suffer when outdoor temperatures drop below 30°F.

Unless your heat pump is equipped with a variable-speed compressor, it will have to switch on its auxiliary heating mode to make up the difference—and that’s not cheap to operate.

Of course, what you should be thinking at this point is, “How often does Southern California temperature drop below 30°F?”

There’s really no point during the year where temperatures drop that low. And even if it does, it certainly won’t last for long. This means the main drawback of a heat pumps is null and void thanks to our climate.

When it comes to “cooling mode” in a heat pump, there’s no equal. Heat pumps are extremely efficient air conditioners. Running your air conditioner in Whittier CA won’t feel like a luxury thanks to the way heat pumps operate. Namely, by removing warm air from your home.

Plus, if you go with ductless, you’ll get the added benefit of built-in zone control. You can reduce monthly operational costs even further by controlling exactly which air handlers you want to keep running. You can use the AC in your living room for most of the day and then flip on the AC for your bedrooms at night—both sets can be used independently of each other.

As the last few years have shown, Southern California will always have its share of fires. Even after the fires are gone, one side effect is the decrease in air quality. That smoky air is going to find its way inside your home no matter what. With a normal ducted air conditioner, those contaminants are going to end up inside your ductwork. Give it a couple years and you’ll need to have it cleaned out, or else you’ll be blowing around old dust and dirt through your home.

Getting a duct cleaning every now and then isn’t the end of the world, but it’s an inconvenience that many homeowners would rather do without. Ductless heat pumps don’t use any ducts—as their name suggests—so there’s no need for this. These units are equipped with their own filters to help sort out the contaminants from your air supply. Even better is the fact that most of these filters can be removed and cleaned out in your kitchen sink for more use.