Geothermal ground loop system in ecosmart house
A REHAU geothermal ground loop heat exchange system will be the primary energy source for the radiant heating and cooling systems in the REHAU MONTANA ecosmart house. The pipe used for the geothermal vertical borehole field will be RAUGEO™ PEXa pipe with double U-bends in each borehole for optimal energy extraction. Ground loops will be connected to the heat pump via a balancing manifold. The geothermal heat pump will be a combination unit (water-to-water and water-to-air) capable of handling both the sensible loads of the radiant system in the floors as well as the latent loads of the forced air ventilation system. This dual function will support a supplemental forced air heating and cooling system for fast pickup in ‘shoulder’ periods or as desired at any time of year.
How geothermal ground loop systems work
Geothermal heat pump systems take advantage of the moderate and relatively constant ground temperatures to provide free, renewable energy for heating, cooling and domestic hot water. Because they use electricity only to move energy, rather than to generate it, geothermal heat pumps are significantly more efficient than conventional systems. They typically use only one unit of electricity to move three to four units of energy from the earth.
A ground loop heat exchanger is a sealed, pressurized closed loop pipe system that circulates a heat transfer fluid below the earth's surface. The same ground loops are used for both heating and cooling. When heating, the system collects and concentrates heat from the ground and delivers it to the home. When cooling, excess heat is removed from the home and dispersed into the ground. By simply turning a switch on the indoor thermostat, the flow of energy is reversed inside the heat pump.
A ground source heat pump system can reduce energy costs by up to 70 percent in the heating mode and up to 50 percent in the cooling mode, according to the EPA. This reduced energy consumption substantially reduces carbon dioxide emissions. For a typical residential system, this eliminates nearly 220 metric tons (242.51 tons) of carbon over a 20-year period.