Real Estate, Finance and Home Articles of Interest

A Geothermal Heat Pump (GHP) is an apparatus that extracts heat from below the surface of earth. It works on the principle that heat flows from higher temperature substances to lower temperature substances via conduction or via convection (air currents). Geothermal Heat Pumps take in heat from the earth or water bodies to provide space and water heating. This works since the earth traps nearly half the sun's energy that is received by the earth.

Taking advantage of the earth's ability to store thermal energy, ground source heating and cooling is inexpensive and environmentally friendly while still providing lots of heat. These pump systems can either pump heat from the ground into a building, or in warmer weather, from the building back into the ground. It doesn't take much electricity to run the pumps and fans, along with a compressor.

The temperature of the ground a few feet below the surface is relatively constant, to GHPS use it as a source of heating a cooling. GHPs can be used for either retrofit or brand new homes, and they can also provide hot water with no extra cost, just by moving heat around instead of creating it. GHPs are new, but they can save you a lot of money.

Although the initial cost of a new geothermal system is generally more expensive than a traditional heating and cooling system, the extra investment is returned within five to ten years. The ground loop piping is estimated to last over fifty years, and even the internal parts have about a 25 year life span. Every year about 50,000 new geothermal heating systems are added in the United States. They're very reasonable for most areas and can use the Earth for heating when temperatures drop and as a heat sink when it's hot outside.

Many new residential systems are equipped with desuperheaters which transfer excess heat from the geothermal heat pump's compressor to the home's hot water storage tank providing very efficient water heating. However, the desuperheater will not provide hot water during the spring and fall when the geothermal heat pump system is not operating. But because the geothermal heating system is so much more efficient than other means of water heating, some manufacturers are offering 'full demand' systems that utilize a separate heat exchanger to cost-effectively provide for hot water needs.