When a geothermal heating and cooling system is used for
cooling in warmer months, the earth is used as storage for excess heat. The
heat pump absorbs the excess heat from inside a building and uses the
fluid-filled ground loop to send the heat below ground for depositing. While it
may be hot on the surface, below ground temperatures remain steady and cool all
year long- this enables heat from the building to be easily absorbed below
ground.
When heating mode is utilized, the geothermal heating and
cooling system works in reverse. The ground loop absorbs heat from below ground
and moves it up to the building. This heat is distributed to the needed areas
by the heat pump. Even though the ground may be frosty, the below ground
temperature is toasty enough to provide heat for use indoors.
One added perk of geothermal heating and cooling systems is
supplemental hot water. A desuperheater is a water to refrigerant heat
exchanger which can be tied into a geothermal heating and cooling system’s
ground loop. It doesn’t hurt the efficiency of the system’s heating and cooling
capacities, and provides hot water for the building pretty much for free. Plus,
when a hot water system is tied into the geothermal heating and cooling system,
efficiency is actually increased, because less heat needs to be deposited back
below ground.
A geothermal heating and cooling system very complicated; more so than traditional forced air furnaces and air conditioners. A properly sized earth loop and heat pump is important. If you have questions about what a geothermal heating and cooling system does, feel free to contact us. The geothermal heating and cooling system contractors at Smith Sustainable Design are available to answer any questions you may have.