Heat Pump Elements · From $90
Heat pump auxiliary and emergency heat elements
Auxiliary and emergency heat elements for heat pump air handlers. In an Ontario winter these strips carry the load whenever the outdoor unit cannot keep up or goes into defrost, so a failed element usually shows up as a house that will not hold temperature on the coldest nights of the year.
Diagnose first
What the symptoms are telling you
Work out what has actually failed before you order. We would rather talk you out of a part you do not need than sell you the wrong one.
House will not hold temperature in deep cold
The heat pump alone cannot cover the load below its balance point and the aux strips are not coming on to make up the difference.
Do this: Watch for the aux or emergency heat indicator on the thermostat during a cold snap.
Cold air from the vents during defrost
During a defrost cycle the system runs in reverse and relies on the strips to temper the supply air. Dead strips mean cold air straight into the house.
Do this: Confirm the strips energise when defrost starts.
Emergency heat produces nothing
Emergency heat bypasses the compressor and runs on strips alone, so if nothing warms, the fault is in the strips, the sequencer or the control circuit.
Do this: Test each strip for continuity.
Hydro bill spikes in winter
Aux heat is running far more than it should, often because of a thermostat staging setting or a failing compressor rather than the elements.
Do this: Check the balance point setting before replacing anything.
Brands we wind for
Matched to your equipment, whoever made it
We wind to factory resistance for these makes. Do not see yours? We wind for almost anything — send the details.
Work it out yourself first
Free tools and guides. We would rather you ordered the right part than ordered twice.
Heat Pump questions
What is the difference between auxiliary and emergency heat?
Auxiliary heat is automatic. The thermostat brings the strips on to supplement the heat pump when the outdoor temperature drops or the indoor temperature falls a couple of degrees behind setpoint. Emergency heat is a manual mode that shuts the compressor off entirely and runs on strips alone. Both use the same physical elements, so one dead strip affects both.
How do I know if it is the strips or the heat pump?
Switch the thermostat to emergency heat. That takes the compressor out of the picture completely. If you still get no heat, the fault is in the strip circuit. If emergency heat works but the system struggles in normal operation, the heat pump side needs attention.
Do heat pump elements fail differently than furnace elements?
They see a different duty cycle. Aux strips sit idle for months, then run hard through a cold snap. That thermal cycling is harder on the coil supports and terminal connections than the steadier duty an electric furnace sees, so terminal burn-off is a more common failure here.
Can I upgrade to a larger heat kit?
Only if the air handler is rated for it and the circuit can carry the load. The breaker, wire gauge and cabinet listing all set a hard ceiling. Send us your air handler model and we will tell you what it is rated to accept.
Get a quote
Tell us about your heat pump
Model number, a photo of the data plate, or the old element on a tape measure — any of those and we can spec your replacement.