Call the B.E.S.T. — Bellingham's Energy Savings Team
Licensed, bonded & insured — WA L&I #BELLIHC808NM Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:30 PM
Installed price · verified 2026-09-04
$4,000–$8,000 Installed replacement of an existing ducted air-source heat pump, reusing serviceable ductwork and, where sized correctly, the existing circuit. A second local source publishes $4,900–$11,700 for ducted heat pump work here, which is the same job with duct or electrical scope added., before rebates. Here is what decides where in that range your house lands.
Installed replacement of an existing ducted air-source heat pump, reusing serviceable ductwork and, where sized correctly, the existing circuit. A second local source publishes $4,900–$11,700 for ducted heat pump work here, which is the same job with duct or electrical scope added.
Installed price before rebates — equipment, labour, materials, permit and startup. The federal §25C tax credit contributes $0 in 2026: it terminated for anything placed in service after December 31, 2025.
Range benchmarked 2026-09-04 against published local pricing. Your quote is fixed before work starts — no hourly surprises.
Most impactful first. These are the questions we ask on the phone, and they are the reason a range exists at all.
Line by line, the way we scope it. If a quote you are holding is a single lump sum, this is the list to ask them to break out.
| Line item | Typical range | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Replacement outdoor unit and matched indoor coil | the dominant line on a like-for-like replacement | — |
| New line set, or flush and pressure-test of the existing one | quoted after evaluating the existing lines | — |
| Filter drier, transitions and plenum adaptation | included; older coil cabinets rarely match new equipment exactly | — |
| Electrical: reuse of the existing circuit, or a new one where the load has changed | $250–$900 for a new dedicated circuit | HomeGuide. Performed by a licensed electrical contractor. |
| Duct repair or resizing where airflow does not meet the new equipment | quoted only if measurement shows it is needed | — |
| Thermostat and lockout controls set to the rebate requirements | included in commissioning | — |
| Refrigerant recovery and disposal of the old system | included | — |
| Mechanical permit and inspection | per the governing jurisdiction’s fee schedule | — |
| Startup, airflow verification and charge documentation | included | — |
| Diagnostic trip charge on the assessment visit | $89.99, refunded as company credit if you accept the bid | — |
Line items are quoted against your house, not averaged. Your written quote is fixed before work starts.
Same work, three different houses. The arithmetic runs from the installed price, through the programs that apply, to what you write a cheque for.
The cleanest replacement case there is. PSE requires the installing contractor to be in its network, so confirm that before treating the $1,500 as certain.
The awkward case, and worth stating plainly: replacing a ductless system with another ductless system currently falls between both PSE programmes. Manufacturer instant rebates are the only reliable money on the table.
On a twenty-year-old system it is usually worth doing the envelope at the same time, because a tighter house may need less equipment. PSE reports roughly half its customers qualify for Efficiency Boost.
No example includes a federal tax credit, because there is none to include for a 2026 install. The largest single line in most of these is Puget Sound Energy's $1,500 electric-resistance conversion rebate, which is contractor-gated — PSE requires the installer to be inside its network, so ask us to confirm status for your project before you count on it.
Puget Sound Energy
$1,500
Available now$2,400 with Efficiency Boost. Ducted systems only — ductless is not eligible.
Puget Sound Energy
Raises other PSE rebates
Income-qualifiedHeat pump $1,500 → $2,400 · heat pump water heater $1,000 → $1,100 · smart thermostat $75 → $175.
Puget Sound Energy (with ICF)
$300–$600
Available nowTier 1 $300 (SEER2 ≥15.2 / HSPF2 ≥8.1, retrofit only) · Tier 2 $400 (SEER2 ≥15.2 / HSPF2 ≥8.5) · Tier 3 $600 (SEER2 ≥16 / HSPF2 ≥9.5).
Bellingham note: Whether this discount can be combined with the $1,500 conversion rebate is unconfirmed: PSE’s conversion page says its rebate "cannot be combined with any other rebates except where noted", while PSE’s heating hub tells customers to ask their contractor. We quote it separately and confirm with a PSE Energy Advisor before counting it toward your total.
Puget Sound Energy
$0.20–$2.50 per sq ft
Available nowAttic R11-or-less → R49 $1.75/sq ft up to $3,500 · wall R0 → R13 $2.50/sq ft up to $5,000 · floor → R30 $2.50/sq ft up to $5,000 · air sealing $0.20/sq ft up to $400 each for attic and floor · duct sealing up to $1,000.
Internal Revenue Service
$0 — terminated
EndedHistorically 30% of cost, up to $2,000/year for heat pumps and heat pump water heaters. Gone. The One Big Beautiful Bill (P.L. 119-21, enacted July 4, 2025) accelerated its termination.
Every Bellingham rebate, with the source and the date we checked it →
A range, not a quote — and the arithmetic is shown so you can check it. Every band below is a published installed price, linked at the bottom.
Sources, all checked 2026-09-04: ductless by zone, ducted in Bellingham, local aggregator range, panel upgrade, dedicated circuit, heat pump water heater. Electrical work is performed and permitted by a licensed electrical contractor — we hold a general contractor registration, not an electrical one.
The work itself
Replace a tired system once, correctly, instead of paying for a third repair on equipment that will not see another winter.
See how we do it — process, permits, equipment and timeline →
Talk it through — (360) 592-3824A range tells you whether to keep reading. Tell us about the house and we will tell you which end of it you are at, what the rebates take off, and what the written quote will say.
Range benchmarked 2026-09-04 against published local pricing · All published cost ranges
Tell us what you have now and what you want it to do. We will tell you what fits, what it costs, and which rebates you actually qualify for — before anyone comes out.
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