Now you have every incentive to choose heat pump technology
Puget Sound Energy, Seattle City Light and Snohomish PUD are offering contractors instant discounts of up to $600 for heat pumps and heat pump water heaters.
With an instant discount, you’ll get immediate savings to pass on to your customers. Plus, they’ll get the benefit of energy savings that come naturally with heat pump technology.
We’ve partnered with distributors in our region to provide savings right at the point of sale without customer paperwork; we call these midstream rebates. Midstream rebates are based on AHRI certifications and must meet minimum eligibility requirements.
Residential customers are limited to one heat pump and one heat pump water heater rebate each. There is no limit for commercial customers.
Heat pump incentives
Residential and small commercial <5.4 ton air-cooled heat pumps
Summarized below, the program changes for 2023 take effect for sales made on or after January 1, 2023.
- Only SEER and HSPF ratings. Equipment manufactured prior to January 1, 2023 but sold in 2023 will qualify for rebates using Table 1 below. Heat pumps will be eligible for the program under these minimum efficiencies based on the available ratings in AHRI and with an invoice date between January 1, 2023–December 31, 2023.
- Only SEER2 and HSPF2 ratings. The program will adopt three tiers for heat pump equipment with SEER2 and HPSF2 ratings. See Table 2 below for criteria and rebate levels. Heat pumps will be eligible under these minimum efficiencies based on the available ratings in AHRI with an invoice date between January 1, 2023–December 31, 2023.
- Both SEER and HSPF and SEER2 and HSPF2 ratings. Heat pumps with dual ratings for both SEER/HSPF and SEER2/HSPF2 ratings and with an invoice date between January 1, 2023–June 30, 2023 will continue to follow the criteria and rebate levels from Table 1 below. Heat pumps with an invoice date between July 1, 2023–December 31, 2023 will follow the criteria and rebate levels from Table 2 below.
Table 1: SEER/HSPF rated commercial and residential air-cooled heat pumps (<5.4 tons)
| Equipment type |
Project type |
Tier | SEER | HSPF | Pass-through rebate ($/outdoor system) |
Distributor spiff ($/outdoor system) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mini or Multi-Split Heat Pump* <65 kBtuh |
Retrofit and new construction | 1 | 16.0 | 9.5 | $400 | $50 |
| 2 | 16.0 | 11.0 | $600 | $50 | ||
| Traditional Heat Pump Retrofit only <65 kBtuh |
Retrofit only | 1 | 15.0 | 9.0 | $300 | $50 |
| Retrofit and new construction | 2 | 15.0 | 10.0 | $500 | $50 |
Table 1 is for equipment that only has SEER/HSPF ratings with an invoice date between January 1, 2023–December 31, 2023 or for equipment that has both SEER/HSPF and SEER2/HSPF2 ratings in the AHRI Directory with an invoice date between January 1, 2023–June 30, 2023. Equipment meeting these criteria and invoice dates can be submitted to the Program at any time in 2023.
Table 2: SEER2/HSPF2 rated commercial and residential air-cooled heat pumps (<5.4 tons)
| Equipment type |
Project type |
Tier | SEER 2 | HSPF 2 | Pass-through rebate ($/outdoor system) |
Distributor spiff ($/outdoor system) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air source heat pump <65 kBtuh |
Retrofit and new construction | 1 | 15.2 | 8.1 | $300 | $50 |
| 2 | 15.2 | 8.5 | $400 | $50 | ||
| 3 | 16.0 | 9.5 | $600 | $50 |
Table 2 is for equipment that has SEER2/HSPF2 ratings with an invoice date between January 1, 2023–December 31, 2023. Equipment with both ratings should use Table 1 incentives through June 30, 2023.
Water heater incentives
Commercial and residential hybrid heat pump water heaters*
| Unit type | Building type |
Project type |
Performance criteria |
Customer pass-through rebate ($/unit) |
Contractor spiff ($/unit)** |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hybrid heat pump water heater ≤120 gallons*** |
Commercial | Retrofit or new construction | Any NEEA Tier | $600 | $100 |
| Residential | Retrofit only | NEEA Tier 3 or 4 | $500 | $100 | |
| New construction only | NEEA Tier 4 | $150 | N/A |
*The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) qualifying product list can be found online.
**Contractor spiff will be passed through by the distributor to the contractor as a line item on the invoice.
***May be referred to as electric hybrid water heater in the marketplace.
Documentation required:
- Installation address, including suite number if applicable
- Customer and/or business name (for commercial installations)
- Building type: Single family, office, retail, etc.
- Project type: New construction or retrofit
- Estimated installation date
How to combine or optimize rebates
If your PSE commercial or residential customer is using electric resistance for primary heating in their home or business, and they install a qualifying heat pump, they may be eligible for TWO PSE rebates.
- Residential customers with existing zonal electric resistance heating, and electric forced air furnaces as their primary current heating system may be eligible for two rebates.
- Commercial customers with electric resistance as their primary heating may be eligible for two rebates.
- Midstream rebates are not dependent on existing heating fuel or heating equipment. They are based on current building codes and claim savings for above code installations.
- Midstream rebates are available to contractors who provide installation data to their distributor at the time of purchase or after installation. Contractors are encouraged to pass the PSE funded distributor rebate through to customers.
Why choose heat pump technology?
Installing heat pump systems means a better return on investment for your customers, higher profitability for your team, and happier home buyers.
Demand for air conditioning is growing more than ever, and heat pumps are the most efficient type of air conditioning on the market.
Heat pumps improve the value of homes, are the most cost-effective home heating and cooling method, and have an average lifespan of 15 years.
Water heating and HVAC systems represent up to 60% of a home’s energy usage. Installing heat pumps and heat pump water heaters means big savings for homeowners on a monthly basis for the lifespan of the unit.
Modern heat pump water heaters are reliable, consistent, durable and have an average lifespan of 13 years.
What heat pump technology means to homeowners:
- Heat pump water heaters use up to 60% less energy than standard electric models.
- Heat pump water heaters typically come with 10-year warranties.
- Heat pump technology is reliable and easy to maintain.
- Ductless split-systems are extremely quiet and give homeowners more control over the temperature on a room-by-room basis.
Visit these links to check out programs that may be of interest:
For personalized advice, contact an Energy Advisor.
Or call 1-800-562-1482.
Request a PSE Recommended Energy Professional (REP) to complete your energy efficient improvement upgrade.