What is a Geothermal Heat Pump?
Geothermal heat pumps (also known as earth-coupled, ground-source, or water-source heat pumps) can heat, cool, and even supply your building with hot water. Unlike a conventional furnace that requires a manufactured heat source, geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) use the constant temperature of the earth for heat exchange.
While seasonal temperatures vary greatly in New England, just a few feet below the earth’s surface the ground remains at a fairly constant temperature ranging from about 50°F to 60°F. This means that on a bitter cold day, your heat pump is still capable of drawing in substantial heat. On a hot day, the heat pump works in reverse, sucking out the hot air and drawing in the earth’s cool air. To take advantage of the constant temperatures, a geothermal system circulates water (or a water-based solution such as anti-freeze) through a buried loop system.
It’s true that the price of a geothermal system is more expensive than a conventional furnace, but the savings on energy is tremendous. Geothermal heat pump technology is proven to be reliable, long lasting and highly efficient. Which is one additional reason that GHPs are increasingly the choice of smart consumers. In fact, approximately 40,000 geothermal heat pumps are installed in the United States each year, and trend is dramatically increasing.
