@ValentineWeather, how's the heat pump working out for you? In Oklahoma, much warmer than you, seems ours runs all winter.
Doug
Funny you should ask I just did a little blog on it.
Update 10-30-19: 9° this morning windchill -1° thermostat set at 69° and still keeping up without secondary heat strips. Register temperature at 83°. Turns off for 6 minutes between cycles and runs 24 minutes. 2 cycles per hour with strips kicking on only during defrost (every 90 minutes) for 5 minutes.
So the balance point for this home is lower than 9° but still has to be more expensive compared to efficient propane furnace because it's like running the AC unit in the summer continuously after you factor in the energy used for defrost cycle.
Just how expensive won't know until the first full month of winter heating bills come in. Cheaper than an electric resistance furnace or heaters no doubt and about the same as pellets are my best guesstimate at $250 a ton. I've gone the pellet stove rout before and never again. They breakdown, storage issues, messy and uneven heating. IMO propane with a high efficient furnace (97%+) as long as it's under $1.50 gallon ($1.25 currently) is the way to go in cold climates.
Natural gas even better but not available for some really strange reason when it's so close by. I wonder who was in on the decision making of this jewel not to bring NG into Valentine? Somebody's profiting no doubt because it should have been done years ago. The coal fired Powerplants are closing due to low NG prices (not emissions) and Valentine still doesn't have it.