When you want the most energy efficient, durable and comfortable cooling and heating for your home, consider geothermal systems. They use the energy stored underground where temperatures are stable year-round. They’re quiet, dependable and use little electricity year-round to keep your home at your preferred temperatures.
What a Geothermal System Is
A geothermal heat pump (GHP) provides both cooling and heating, which makes it the ideal way to use geothermal energy for home conditioning. GHPs use an underground loop field that consists of buried pipes filled with a liquid that acts as a heat transfer medium.
As the water or liquid circulates underground, it absorbs the stored energy or, in the case of air conditioning, deposits it. The liquid flows into a heat exchanger that’s housed in an air handler indoors. The air from your home blows over the heat exchanger or evaporator coil before it goes through the ductwork.
These systems are so efficient because they don’t have to create heat. They simply move it from one place to another. In the cooling mode, the GHP doesn’t have to fight hot outdoor temperatures to lose the heat from your home. Instead, the liquid travels underground and looses your home’s heat in the ground, which remains about 50 degrees F year-round.
Geothermal Advantages
Besides low energy bills, geothermal systems offer:
Durability.
The underground loop field for a GHP lasts 50 years and more. The indoor components last 25 years or more with scheduled maintenance.
Quiet.
A GHP doesn’t need an outdoor condenser, which quiets your home and yard considerably.
Reliability.
A GHP uses far fewer parts, which reduces the odds of a breakdown.
Tax credits.
Anyone who installs a qualifying GHP through December 31, 2019 can claim a 30 percent federal tax credit. The cost of the equipment and its installation are included and there is no upward cap on the amount you can claim.
If you’d like to learn more about geothermal systems and their benefits, contact the experts at Ace Hardware Home Services, providing HVAC services for Dayton-area homeowners.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Dayton, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
