What About Geothermal Cooling?

Imagine a system that is capable of both heating and cooling your home, using a clean, renewable source of energy with no combustion to add pollutants to the atmosphere despite the fact that it can deliver heat, air conditioning and hot water with approximately 40%-70% more efficiency than most traditional heating systems.

Imagine further that by using this heating system, you become eligible for tax credits, payment rebates from your utility companies - and still save as much as $1500 a year on your typical heating and cooling costs. Does it all sound too good to be true? The Geothermal Heat Pump Consortium has $100 million to help convince homeowners to try the heating and cooling system that the Environmental Protection Agency calls "the most energy-efficient and environmentally sensitive of all space conditioning systems".

What is a geothermal heat pump and why use it for cooling your house? Also known as a 'ground source heat pump', a geothermal heat pump takes advantage of the earth as a source of constant temperature. No matter the time of year, the earth itself remains at a fairly constant 55 degrees. In a nutshell, a geothermal heat pump takes advantage of this steady temperature by circulating water (or a mixture of water and antifreeze)through a system of plastic pipes buried in the ground. As it travels through the warmer (or cooler, depending on the air temperature) earth, the water in the pipes adjusts to 55 degrees - a considerable difference from the temperature of water stored in a surface tank for heating or cooling purposes.

From there, a geothermal cooling system works the same way as a forced-air system for either heating or cooling - by blowing air past the cooled pipes and into the house while siphoning the hot air out to be cooled. The advantages of using a geothermal cooling system for your home are many. Because air doesn't have to be cooled as much, there are substantial energy savings - both to you and to the earth. A geothermal cooling system can:

* cool your home 20% to 40% more efficiently than traditional air conditioners

* cut your energy costs for cooling your home by up to 50% * cool your home more uniformly than air conditioner units

* utilize the same pump, pipes and ducts that your heating system does * qualify you for special financing rates on home construction or renovations for installation

* qualify you for rebates from from some utility companies on your energy costs * conserve natural resources by reducing the energy used to heat and cool the environment and lowering the total emissions released into the atmosphere

* reduce damage to the ozone layer because it uses closed refrigeration systems that will seldom if ever need recharging A geothermal cooling system is the most environmentally friendly method of controlling the temperature in your home.

For information about possible rebates and special savings for installing a geothermal cooling system in your home, contact your local utility companies.