GeoThermal

A geothermal heat pump, ground source heat pump (GSHP), or ground heat pump[1] is a central heating and/or cooling system that pumps heat to or from the ground. It uses the earth as a heat source (in the winter) or a heat sink (in the summer). This design takes advantage of the moderate temperatures in the ground to boost efficiency and reduce the operational costs of heating and cooling systems, and may be combined with solar heating to form a geosolar system with even greater efficiency.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) geothermal systems are, “the most energy-efficient, environmentally clean, and cost-effective space conditioning systems available today.”  Extremely high levels of efficiency are possible because a geothermal heat pump only uses electricity to move heat, not produce it. A geothermal unit typically supplies 4 kilowatts of heat for every kilowatt of electricity used.  Three of these kilowatts of heat come directly from the earth itself, and are clean, free and renewable. Geothermal heat pumps also take advantage of the mild ground temperature for extremely high efficiency cooling. Most systems also include a hot water generator, which diverts a portion of the supplied heat to the domestic water heater. This provides a substantial portion of a family’s hot water needs at a very low cost. Overall, geothermal technology offers the highest cooling and heating efficiencies of any system available today.