Geothermal Heating and Cooling takes advantage of the Earth's ability to store solar energy, and its relatively constant underground temperatures to heat and cool the air inside your home or place of business.
A Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP) inside the building, pumps either water or an antifreeze solution through long pipes buried in the ground, allowing the earth to naturally regulate the temperature of the fluid, and in turn, the indoor air.
When talking about Geothermal installations, you'll often hear them referred to as a 'vertical loop system', or 'horizontal loop system'.
The piping needed for a geothermal installation can be buried in the ground either vertically or horizontally, depending on factors such as soil conditions, neighboring properties, or nearby underground utilities.
Horizontal loop fields can be placed by either digging a large trench (simplest method, but most destructive to existing lawns or other ground covering) or by pulling the pipes underground using a directional drilling machine. Directionally drilling the system is more time consuming, but minimizes damage to lawns. As this system is much wider than it is deep, adequate open property adjacent to your building is a requirement for this type of system.
Vertical loop fields are drilled straight down into the ground, and so are much deeper than they are wide. Given the smaller footprint required for a Vertical Loop, this type of system is generally required in situations where adjacent property isn't sufficient for a properly sized Horizontal Loop. Although Vertical Loops are typically more expensive to install, due to the extra piping and equipment required, they are also more efficient than Horizontal Loops.
Systems can be designed to be either Open Loop (pulling water from a well, or other available water source) or Closed Loop (water in the system is continuously recycled.)
The vast majority of geothermal installations are Closed Loop systems. An Open Loop system requires a water source capable of providing a large volume of water continuously, as well as a suitable location into which water from the system can be discharged. Very few properties will meet the criteria for an Open Loop system.
Horizontal Loop systems are generally preferable when adequate space is available, due to the lower installation costs.
An Open Loop system is generally only available when a suitable body of water is close enough to discharge water from the system into.
A Closed Loop Pond system may be an option for those adjacent to a private lake or holding pond. In this specialty applicaiton, loops are coiled on the bed of the pond (at least 8 feet deep). A system of this type will save money on installation due to reduced drilling costs.
Our trained staff will work with you to design the most appropriate solution for your unique situation.
