Geothermal Space Conditioning Systems
How they work

Have you ever seen pictures of a volcano or a geyser? If so, then you’ve seen geothermal energy in action!

"Geo" means "from the earth," and "thermal" means "heat," so this type of energy is found under the earth. The hot lava from a volcano and the hot steam from a geyser both come from underground heat – and we can use that same type of heat in our homes.

Here’s how it works: about four feet underground, the temperature of the earth stays the same all year long - about 55 degrees.

A geothermal heating system uses pipes buried more than four feet deep in the earth.

The system pumps a liquid through the pipes to absorb the heat and brings it back indoors. A device called a "heat exchanger" takes the heat from the liquid and uses it to heat the air inside the home.

Geothermal energy uses heat from under the earth

A geothermal system can cool your house during the summer, too! It just works in reverse, absorbing the heat from the air inside your home and moves it back into the earth.

A geothermal heater is also very energy-efficient. The system is using the heat from the earth to heat your home.  The only energy used is the electricity to run your pump to circulate the fluid in the pipes in the ground. Almost none of the energy used is wasted, so it helps keep heating bills very low during the winter.

Click here to see a short Video on how the systems work.

Their are three basic types of geothermal systems.

Here are a two diagrams showing how the systems take the fluid through the pipe loop and generate your heat in winter and cool in summer.



Facts

  • Many of the residential-sized systems installed are equipped with desuperheaters that also provide hot water. The desuperheater is a small auxiliary heat exchanger at the compressor outlet. It transfers excess heat to a water line that circulates in the water tank. In the summer, when air conditioning runs frequently, a desuperheater may supply a household’s entire hot water needs.
  • Geothermal systems are more efficient than air source heat pumps, because ground temperatures are much more uniform throughout the year than air temperatures.
  • Geothermal systems have many environmental advantages. They use less energy, fewer natural resources and create less pollution.
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