Geothermal Heat Pumps: Superior New Technology
Ryan McCall
A Geothermal Heat Pump (http://www.Green-Energy-Info.com/Geothermal-Heat-Pumps.html) (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.
Ground source heating and cooling (http://www.Green-Energy-Info.com/Geothermal-Power.html) will give great comfort and be cost-effective with environmentally-friendly technology which uses our planet's ability to store energy as heat. Geothermal heat pump systems move the heat from Earth or from water into buildings, or from buildings right back into Earth. A little bit of electricity is employed for operating fans, pumps, controls, and a little compressor.
GHPs utilize the relatively constant temperature of the ground or water several feet below the surface as a source of heating and cooling and are appropriate for both retrofit or new homes. In addition to space heating and cooling, geothermal heat pumps can provide hot water with virtually no additional energy requirements because GHPs don't create heat; they merely move it from one area to another. This is a relatively new technology that can save homeowners money.
Even though the cost of installation of a geothermal system can be several times that of traditional heating and cooling system, the additional costs are returned in energy savings in 5 to 10 years. The life of such a system is estimated at 25 years for the interior components and 50 or more years for the ground loop piping. Approximately 50,000 geothermal heating systems are installed in the US each year. Geothermal heat pumps are practical in most areas. They can use the Earth as a heat source in the winter and a heat sink in the summer.
Many newer housing systems come with desuperheaters which take out warm air from the heat pump's compressor and use it to heat your water. The only downside is that when not using your compressor it will not provide the hot water because it is not running. Some companies are also giving a system with a separate heater during times of non use because the geothermal heating systems are such a money saver and so much more efficient.
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