The Geothermal Heat Pump Vs Gas Furnace - A Comparison Of Just Two Heating And Cooling Systems
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by: DannyPaul | Total views: 9 | Word Count: 519
Heat pumps can be operated in a couple of basic ways - they can either remove heat from the atmosphere outdoors (although it might not feel warm out there!), and deposit it inside your house, or they can remove heat from the earth and heat your house with it.
Geothermal heat pumps come in two basic modes - they can either take heat from the air outside the house (even though it may not seem very warm outdoors!), and put it inside to heat your home, or they can be a geothermal type, which takes heat from the earth and does the same thing. The great thing about heat pumps is that they can be reversed, taking heat out of your house and depositing either in the outside air, or into the ground.
The features of heat pump operation make a great case for a heat pump vs air conditioner, and likewise, heat pump vs gas furnace. Only 1.5 meters below the ground surface the temperature is about 13C (approximately 55F) and doesn't change a lot between winter and summer.
The pipes outside the heat pump itself, called the collector system, can either be quite near to the surface of the ground and spread over a big area, or lowered a hole drilled straight down into the ground, just like a well. Less pipe is required for the well type, because the temperature fluctuations are and more stable with increasing depth.
A shallow collector grid of perhaps one hundred meters in length is normally installed at less than a meter underground, and comprises a pattern of just one flexible pipe coiled back on itself to make an extended "W". Each section should be sufficiently distant from the next loop so that heat energy doesn't pass across two loops, but heat transfer takes place between the pipe loops and the earth around them.
Of course, the pipe size and length will depend upon the power rating of the pump system, and the physical ground area required will be governed by other factors, such as soil type. The installation of such a collector system is well within the scope of the do-it-yourselfer. The alternative is to have a professional company to drill a hole up to 100 meters deep - the exact depth depending on your requirements and the characteristics of the ground in your area. A double pipe is inserted into the hole, and this is connected to your geothermal heat pump system.
The difference in temperature between the ground 100 meters underground and just 1.5 meters below ground will only be around 1 degree, but it is much more stable, not varying at all between seasons - this is why a shorter length of pipe is required for the collector. After installation, the system is relatively maintenance , except for periodic checks each year. Such an installation will save a huge on your heating and cooling bills, as a large proportion of the heat energy comes from the ground itself and not from fossilized fuel sources. A photovoltaic geothermal heat pump uses only solar power for it's electricity input and it has zero running costs.
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