Architect and Engineering Manual
6
FEATURES & BENEFITS
HEAT PUMP OPERATION
Heat pumps save money compared to electric  
resistance heat, but if the unit cannot provide room 
occupant comfort, the savings may be of questionable 
benefit. GE Appliances has years of experience with 
designing Zoneline® heat pumps to solve the problem  
of guest complaints.
The heat pump unit uses a two-stage heat/one-stage 
cooling thermostat. Stage one, heat pump operation,  
will operate as specified by the remote thermostat being 
used as long as outdoor conditions will allow. If the 
remote thermostat asks for heat pump heating outside  
of unit heat pump operating conditions, the heating 
request will be met by utilizing back-up resistance heat. 
The Z
oneline Vertical chassis
 will operate in efficient heat 
pump mode down to a 25°F outdoor temperature.  
At temperatures below this, the unit will automatically 
switch to electric heat.
The resistance heater and the heat pump do not operate 
simultaneously.
HEAT PUMP LOGIC 
The chart below indicates the standard heating source 
of the AZ95 series heat pump models under various 
outdoor conditions. The unit is designed to provide  
heat pump savings without sacrificing room comfort. 
QUICK HEAT RECOVERY 
Unit software will provide electric resistance heating 
as the first heat cycle following the unit having been 
set to either off or cool on the remote thermostat. This 
ensures occupant comfort by quickly reaching the desired 
setpoint temperature. All subsequent heating cycles will 
follow heat staging as dictated by the remote thermostat 
if required outdoor temperature conditions are met. Quick 
heat recovery is not influenced by heat pump logic.
HEAT PUMP DEFROST 
Zoneline heat pumps utilize a reverse-cycle, demand-
defrost system to extend heat pump operation and 
increase savings from extended operation. The 
microprocessor determines the need for defrosting from 
criteria based on continuous compressor running time, 
outdoor air temperature and outdoor coil temperature. 
When defrosting is required, the unit reverses the flow  
of refrigerant to direct the hot gas into the outdoor coil  
to melt the frost buildup.
Before and after the reverse-cycle defrost, the unit shuts 
off the compressor to allow the refrigerant pressures to 
equalize through the system. During these periods of 
pressure equalization, the full resistance heat capacity 
of the unit is activated to help ensure room comfort 
conditions during the defrost cycle. The unit remains in 
the defrost cycle for a minimum of three minutes and 
up to a maximum of nine minutes. The defrost cycle 
terminates when the outdoor coil reaches a temperature 
of 68
o 
F or the maximum time has been reached. 
BOOST HEAT 
The AZ95 series offers a Boost Heat option feature that 
utilizes partial supplemental resistance heat at the same 
time as the heat pump operation. The Boost Heat feature 
changes stage one heating (heat pump) to be heat pump 
with partial resistance heat. Stage two heating stays as full 
resistance heat.
NOTE: Heat Pump and full resistance heat shall never be 
on at the same time.
ELECTRONIC CONTROL DIAGNOSTICS/ 
SERVICE MODE  
The Zoneline Vertical system continuously monitors  
the unit operation and in some cases the unit may take 
action and shut down until conditions are corrected.  
The electronic control will store/provide Error Codes  
to aid in diagnosis and correction to get the unit up  
and running quickly.
In addition to Error Codes, the unit is equipped with 
Service Modes that allow for independent testing of unit 
functionality. This allows for fan, heat, cool operations 
among other checks to be “forced" without signals from 
the remote thermostat or unit temperature sensors. This 
is a valuable tool that helps pinpoint operational problems 
and also helps distinguish unit malfunction from problems 
caused by remote thermostat. 
See the product Use & Care/Mini-Manual for specifics on 
Error Codes, Service Modes, and how to use the system.
Heat Setting Configuration
All-Electric  
Heat Mode 
(Aux Mode 8) 
He
at Boost  
Mode 
(Aux Mode 9) 
Full Resistance
Heat
Full Resistance
Heat
Full Resistance
Heat
Full Resistance
Heat
Full Resistance
Heat
Full Resistance
Heat
Full Resistance
Heat
Between 85
o
F
and 25
o
F
Heat Pump
Above 85
o
F
OFF
OFF
ON
OFF
ON
OFF/ON
Below 25
o
F
Heat Pump +
Supplemental 
Heater*
Outdoor Temperature
Preliminary specifications. Subject to change.
*Simultaneous supplemental heat (Boost Heat): 1.0kW @ 230V & 265V; 
 0.8kW @ 208V
Conditions are representative of unit response but not intended for  
minimum rated ambient conditions










