On Heat Pumps, Colorado Hits The Ground Running

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Regardless of the sorry state of federal energy policy today, climate action continues apace among the many US states where public servants prioritize energy affordability alongside job creation, health, and safety. A case in point is Colorado, where the heat pump business is heating up as stakeholders race to capitalize on the state’s new home energy rebate program — which is, ironically, supported by federal funds.

Note: It’s no shock to wake up in the morning to yet another White House crime, but if the US invasion of Venezuela proves anything at all, it proves that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a nincompoop. After all, if any aspirin-addled, narcoleptic idiot can helicopter into a sovereign nation and hijack its head of government at the blink of an eye, how come Putin couldn’t pull off the same job in Ukraine (asking for a friend…).

Colorado Offers Up To $14,000 In Energy Efficiency Upgrade Rebates

And now, back to our regularly scheduled programming, with heat pumps front and center.

Air-sourced electric heat pumps operate on a principle of energy transfer similar to refrigerators, but they can run in two directions to provide for space heating as well as cooling. In terms of heating, they are much more efficient than conventional baseboard electric heaters. According to the US Environmental Protection’s industry-supported Energy Star program, certified air-sourced electric heat pumps are two-thirds less expensive to run than baseboard heaters, and half the cost of oil heat. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory also calculates that the overwhelming majority of US homes can save money by switching to heat pumps, though the amount of savings depends on the cost of natural gas, among other factors.

The sticky wicket is the high upfront cost of installing new HVAC equipment. Rebate programs for energy efficiency upgrades can offer a workaround, and Colorado is about to put one to the test. The state launched its first-ever consumer-friendly program for energy efficiency rebates on November 13 of 2025.

Administered by the Colorado Energy Office, the program makes up to $14,000 available for heat pumps and other energy efficiency upgrades in existing single-family homes, depending on household income. The rebates are also available to small multi-family buildings. A separate rebate track will be offered for mobile homes, factory-built homes, and larger multi-family buildings.

Adding a layer of risk-managed acceleration to the effort, the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade has been providing competitive grants to innovative startups operating in the heat pump area and other elements of the home decarbonization movement.

The Colorado startup Zero Homes made the cut with a point-and-shoot, app-based modeling tool that makes it easy for homeowners to produce a fairly accurate estimate of their costs and potential savings.

“This grant will support Zero Homes’ mission to accelerate the transition of single-family homes to clean, all-electric systems — reducing carbon emissions, lowering energy costs, and improving indoor air quality for Colorado homeowners and beyond,” Zero Home announced on January 2.

One Heat Pump After Another

Zero Home plans to deploy its grant to expand its staff and accelerate its partnerships with utilities and contractors. “This investment will accelerate the company’s growth while contributing to Colorado’s leadership in climate tech and clean energy innovation,” the company emphasizes.

When Zero Homes launched in 2021, it focused on homes around Denver and Northern California among other urban-oriented locations. With an assist from the OEDIT grant, now the company is expanding statewide throughout Colorado with a focus on heat pumps covered by the new rebate program.

According to the company, cold-climate heat pumps can qualify for up to $8,000 in rebates towards the cap of $14,000. Standard heat pumps qualify for up to $3,000.

“These rebates are designed to make electrification and efficiency upgrades more affordable for Coloradans, including cold-climate and standard heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, insulation, air sealing, electrical panel upgrades, and more,” Zero Homes emphasizes.

As part of its services, Zero Homes also helps homeowners combine their state-based rebates with other forms of financial support, including utility incentives, state tax credits, and any other federal benefits that have survived the Trump chopper. “Zero Homes’ statewide expansion ensures that homeowners — from major urban centers to rural mountain towns — can confidently understand their eligibility, navigate the rebate process, and complete professional installations with registered contractors,” the company elaborated, drawing attention to the pre-qualification standards in Colorado’s new rebate program.

Cold-Climate Heat Pumps: The Gift That Keeps On Giving

If you caught that thing about cold-climate heat pumps, that represents yet another new clean technology development that President Trump, for all his bloviating, is powerless to stop.

Until recent years, heat pump technology was not quite up to snuff for use in cold climates where households could potentially realize the most savings. Here in the US, they were previously concentrated in the warmer climates of the Southeast and Southwest.

The seeds of change were sown during the Biden administration. The EPA and the US Department of Energy launched the “Cold Climate Heat Pump Technology” challenge in 2021 in partnership with leading industry stakeholders, with the aim of introducing a new generation of heat pumps into colder regions of the US.

By the time President Trump took office for the second time on January 20, 2025, the damage was already done. According to data compiled and updated regularly by the think tank RMI (formerly Rocky Mountain Institute), 3.9 million heat pumps were sold in the US between October 2024 and September 2025, accounting for 19% more in sales than gas furnaces. “Over the past 20 years, annual heat pump sales have increased by 115% whereas gas furnace sales have decreased by 11%,” RMI adds.

New cold-climate heat pumps are now a fixture on the residential market, and Colorado is not the only state where the action is accelerating. Keep an eye on chilly New England and other parts of the Northeast. In May, for example, the organization Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships noted heat pump sales in New England and New York State increased by almost 400% from 2013 to 2021, and that was before the fresh wave of cold-climate technology hit the market.

Heat Pump Water Heaters Are Coming For Your Fossil Fuels …

A Biden-era initiative to support a new generation of commercial-scale heat pumps is also beginning to bear fruit, and while that is going on, industry stakeholders have also been introducing heat pump clothes dryers and water heaters, too.

The water heater angle is particularly interesting because it dovetails with the virtual power plant movement, part of which involves recruiting individual ratepayers to store excess energy during periods of low demand. Water heaters come into play as a form of thermal energy storage.

Against this backdrop, US President Donald Trump … oh, never mind. If you have any thoughts about that, drop a note in the comment thread. Better yet, find your representatives in Congress and let them know what you think.

Image: A new point-and-shoot app makes it easy for homeowners to estimate their savings from heat pumps and other energy efficiency upgrades (cropped, courtesy of Zero Homes).