Geothermal

The Hidden Treasure Beneath Your Feet.

THE ENERGY CRUNCH is on. What used to be about predicting the future is now very much about the present: energy prices are going up across the board, and builders and homeowners are looking for ways to cope. The result is that more people are exploring alternative energy sources for their daily needs, while researchers and engineers are working tirelessly to improve the technologies involved. Fifteen years ago the incentive just wasn't there – fossil fuels were cheap enough that investing in alternative energy just didn't pay off – but today there is plenty of reason to explore your home energy options.

Enter geothermal energy, a renewable and clean way to heat and cool the home using a source that is one-hundred per cent free: the earth. The ground beneath our feet has tremendous heat storage capacity and retains a relatively constant temperature throughout the year, kept in check by sunlight and the natural radioactive heat of the planet. Most of this energy goes completely unharnessed, but a device called a geothermal heat pump lets you tap into this source and use it to both heat and cool your home. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency called geothermal systems "the most energy-efficient, environmentally clean, and cost-effective space conditioning systems available today."

So who is a candidate for geothermal energy? Thanks to modern heat pump installations, just about anyone. The basic system is nothing more than a pump and a loop of buried pipe filled with liquid, and the idea has been around since the 1940s, but only recently have developments in technology made them highly efficient and easy to install. The loops can be horizontal or vertical and usually require between 125 and 300 feet of either dug trenches or drilled holes. They don't affect the landscape and thanks to the vertical design they can fit into the smallest of properties; the only real exceptions are places with extremely rocky or shallow soil, and even these can usually support some sort of hybrid system.

The heat pump itself is a contained unit that can be installed indoors our out, alone or in combination with a gas or propane furnace. It is connected to the ground loop and the home's duct system, and uses a small amount of electricity to move the heat transfer liquid – either water or an antifreeze solution, depending on the area – through the system. In the end it works in the same way as a refrigerator, moving heat around rather than producing it, which is a far more efficient approach.

In the cold months, the pump extracts heat from the ground and supplies it to the home. During hot months the ground temperature is lower than that of the air, so the pump reverses and uses the ground like a heat sink. All the transfers are conducted through the liquid in the pipes, and a typical geothermal pump produces four or five kilowatts of heating or cooling power for every kilowatt of electricity it consumes. In comparison, a high-efficiency natural gas furnace combined with a high-efficiency air conditioner still has about twice the operating cost of a geothermal system – and that's a rating based on brand new equipment. Replacing an outdated system with geothermal will likely lead to even more dramatic savings. Some new geothermal pumps can even be equipped with separate hot water generators that offset as much as half of your water heating bill. Geothermal heat pumps are rapidly increasing in popularity and availability, and most predictions see them continuing to gain ground in the future and potentially becoming one of the primary solutions for residential heating and cooling. The only thing you need to do to make the switch is find a skilled contractor who can evaluate your needs and perform the installation, since there are lots of technical questions to be answered and options to explore. Properties with access to groundwater wells can support open-loop systems that require less space; those with large enough ponds can support underwater loops and avoid the need for digging. The contractor will also determine the exact amount of pipe required, and the best layout for the loop. With the future of fossil fuels and other traditional energy sources as uncertain as it is, there has never been a better time to consider geothermal heating and cooling for your home.

Geothermal heat pumps are rapidly increasing in popularity and availability, and most predictions see them continuing to gain ground in the future and potentially becoming one of the primary solutions for residential heating and cooling. The only thing you need to do to make the switch is find a skilled contractor who can evaluate your needs and perform the installation, since there are lots of technical questions to be answered and options to explore. Properties with access to groundwater wells can support open-loop systems that require less space; those with large enough ponds can support underwater loops and avoid the need for digging. The contractor will also determine the exact amount of pipe required, and the best layout for the loop. With the future of fossil fuels and other traditional energy sources as uncertain as it is, there has never been a better time to consider geothermal heating and cooling for your home.

You may qualify for a $7000 federal grant when replacing your existing heating system.
Visit www.ecoaction.gc.ca for more information

Resource materials & photos provided by:
Hyde-Whipp Heating & Air Conditioning, Orangeville