benefits / FAQ'S

Benefits of Geothermal Heat Pumps for Home or Commercial Use

Geothermal Heat Pumps

Geothermal heat pumps offer unmatched benefits over traditional heating and cooling systems, including:

  • Lower operating costs: A geothermal system can cut utility bills by 30 to 50 percent compared to conventional heating and cooling systems. Many utility companies offer special lower electric rates and substantial rebates. Most systems have a payback in 3-5 years.
  • Environmental impact: Ground-source heat is naturally renewable and non-polluting.
  • Lower maintenance costs: All equipment is protected indoors or underground.
  • Life span: A geothermal system can have a life expectancy of up to 30 years; ground loops are often warranted for up to 50 years.
  • Single system: Geothermal equipment provides both heating and cooling in one system.
  • Indoor comfort: Geothermal systems eliminate the drafts common with conventional forced-air systems.
  • Design flexibility: Geothermal systems can be easily and inexpensively subdivided or expanded to fit building remodeling or additions.
  • Energy efficiency: By moving heat that already exists in the earth , instead of burning a combustible fuel, a geothermal heat pump can move more than three units of heat energy for every one unit of electrical energy used to power the system.
  • Safety: No dangers of gas leaks or carbon monoxide poisoning.

The biggest benefit of GHPs is that they use 25%–50% less electricity than conventional heating or cooling systems. This translates into a GHP using one unit of electricity to move three units of heat from the earth. According to the EPA, geothermal heat pumps can reduce energy consumption—and corresponding emissions—up to 44% compared to air-source heat pumps and up to 72% compared to electric resistance heating with standard air-conditioning equipment. GHPs also improve humidity control by maintaining about 50% relative indoor humidity, making GHPs very effective in humid areas.

Geothermal heat pump systems allow for design flexibility and can be installed in both new and retrofit situations. Because the hardware requires less space than that needed by conventional HVAC systems, the equipment rooms can be greatly scaled down in size, freeing space for productive use. GHP systems also provide excellent "zone" space conditioning, allowing different parts of your home to be heated or cooled to different temperatures.

Because GHP systems have relatively few moving parts, and because those parts are sheltered inside a building, they are durable and highly reliable. The underground piping often carries warranties of 25–50 years, and the heat pumps often last 20 years or more. Since they usually have no outdoor compressors, GHPs are not susceptible to vandalism. On the other hand, the components in the living space are easily accessible, which increases the convenience factor and helps ensure that the upkeep is done on a timely basis.

Because they have no outside condensing units like air conditioners, there's no concern about noise outside the home. A two-speed GHP system is so quiet inside a house that users do not know it is operating: there are no tell-tale blasts of cold or hot air.

Heat Pump Systems

For climates with moderate heating and cooling needs, heat pumps offer an energy-efficient alternative to furnaces and air conditioners. Like your refrigerator, heat pumps use electricity to move heat from a cool space into a warm, making the cool space cooler and the warm space warmer. During the heating season, heat pumps move heat from the cool outdoors into your warm house; during the cooling season, heat pumps move heat from your cool house into the warm outdoors. Because they move heat rather than generate heat, heat pumps can provide up to 4 times the amount of energy they consume.

The most common type of heat pump is the air-source heat pump, which transfers heat between your house and the outside air. If you heat with electricity, a heat pump can trim the amount of electricity you use for heating by as much as 30%–40%. High-efficiency heat pumps also dehumidify better than standard central air conditioners, resulting in less energy usage and more cooling comfort in summer months. However, the efficiency of most air-source heat pumps as a heat source drops dramatically at low temperatures, generally making them unsuitable for cold climates, although there are systems that can overcome that problem.

For homes without ducts, air-source heat pumps are also available in a ductless version called a mini-split heat pump. In addition, a special type of air-source heat pump called a "reverse cycle chiller" generates hot and cold water rather than air, allowing it to be used with radiant floor heating systems in heating mode.

Higher efficiencies are achieved with geothermal (ground-source or water-source) heat pumps, which transfer heat between your house and the ground or a nearby water source. Although they cost more to install, geothermal heat pumps have low operating costs because they take advantage of relatively constant ground or water temperatures. However, the installation depends on the size of your lot, the subsoil and landscape. Ground-source or water-source heat pumps can be used in more extreme climatic conditions than air-source heat pumps, and customer satisfaction with the systems is very high.

A new type of heat pump for residential systems is the absorption heat pump, also called a gas-fired heat pump. Absorption heat pumps use heat as their energy source, and can be driven with a wide variety of heat sources.

FAQ's

30% Federal Tax credit for systems placed in service by 12/31/2019
26% after 12/31/2019 -before 01/01/2021, 22% after 12/31/2020 - before 01/01/2022
PSEG formally LIPA gives rebate on a per ton basis depending on EER rating. up to $2000/ton
Need to check with NY State as rebates and credits vary.

Designing - Site plans, open versus closed loops, soil information and more.
Selecting - What to look for in geothermal equipment, including heat pumps, loop pumps, loop fluids and piping.
Sizing - Sizing requirements for heat exchangers, loop lengths and well pumps.
Installing - Techniques for installing open and closed loop systems, including pipe joining.
Operating - Get your geothermal system up and running - and keep it operating efficiently.

Geothermal heating and cooling systems use the natural constant ambient temperature of the earth to heat in the winter and cool in the summer. This is accomplished with a compressor or heat pump unit, the liquid heat exchanger medium, and the air delivery system. Quite simply, geothermal systems in heating take heat from the earth, transfer that heat to a refrigerant, then distribute the heat into the structure with a forced-air or hydronic system. In cooling, geothermal systems take heat from the structure, transfer the heat to the refrigerant, then transfer the heat back to the water or loop fluid. This works the same as a standard air conditioner, except a geothermal system uses water or loop fluid at a constant temperature (average 55 degrees) instead of varying outdoor temperature.
In other words, it’s like heating and cooling your home when it’s 55 degrees outside –
all year.

A Manual J is the standard method for comprehensively calculating residential cooling loads (for each room/area) developed by the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) and the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) based largely on the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-Conditioning Engineer's (ASHRAE) "Handbook of Fundamentals."

Manual D is ACCA’s by-the-book methodology for determining duct sizing and installation. Good duct design is essential for balanced airflow.

Manual S is used to size and select the heating and cooling equipment. The goal for equipment selection is to install heating and cooling systems with the same heating and cooling capacities as the heating and cooling loads of your home.