Geothermal
Porter’s Refrigeration, a GeoPro Master Dealer, is a father and son team serving the Eastern Ontario area for more than 30 years with residential and commercial refrigeration services.
Since 1986 we’ve led the industry in Geothermal Heat Pump installations and quality service recommendations. Our team is fully-licensed, factory-trained and top-certified by the Canadian Geo-Exchange Coalition.
“Work with nature, not against it, and emit no greenhouse gases.”
Imagine a home in which the temperature is always comfortable, yet the heating and cooling system is out of sight. That system performs efficiently but doesn’t require extensive maintenance or knowledge on the part of the owners. The air smells fresh; you can hear the birds chirping and the wind rustling lazily through the trees. The home shares energy with the earth similar to the way the roots of the trees exchange the essentials of life to their leaves and branches. Sounds pretty comfortable, doesn’t it?
Geothermal heating and cooling from Porter’s Refrigeration makes that vision a reality. Geothermal HVAC (heating, ventilating, and air conditioning) brings a building in harmony with the earth beneath, taking advantage of subterranean temperatures to provide heating in the winter and cooling in the summer.
Since there is no natural gas, propane, or oil, there is no risk for combustion of fumes or flames. Also, there is no risk for carbon-monoxide poisoning. Geothermal heat pumps are very reliable and safe, lasting twice as long as outdated fossil fuel systems. And given that it is easier to transfer energy through water than it is through air, geothermal systems don’t have to work as hard – which means less wear and tear.
Something else to think about is your total heating, cooling and domestic hot water operating costs. The geothermal system is the total comfort system with the lowest overall cost. For the majority of conventional systems, overall operating costs are based on the efficiency of more than one system – a fossil fuel furnace, central air conditioner and a water heater. All of those operations are handled by one geothermal system, ensuring high efficiency and savings are accomplished in all areas.
Unlike solar and wind energy, geothermal energy is always available, 365 days a year. It’s also relatively inexpensive; savings from direct use can be as much as 80 percent over fossil fuels.
How Geothermal Heating and Cooling Works
Outdoor temperatures fluctuate with the changing seasons but underground temperatures don’t change as dramatically, thanks to the insulating properties of the earth. The earth absorbs and stores approximately 47% of the sun’s solar energy. As a result, the temperature of the earth four to six feet below grade is fairly moderate and stable. A geothermal system, which typically consists of an indoor handling unit and a buried system of pipes, called an earth loop, and/or a pump to reinjection well, capitalizes on these constant temperatures to provide the most energy efficient heating and cooling system available.
The science behind the magic
The heat exchanger, also known as the loop system, captures the stored solar energy in the ground and delivers it back to the geothermal system in the house. There are 4 different types of loops. Your loop system is the heart of geothermal technology. Regardless of the option you select, it will deliver over 500% efficient comfort and savings for many years into the future. We will help you select the proper loop system based on a site survey and by conducting a detailed energy analysis of your home. Installing a geothermal loop system is like getting a 70% discount on energy for the life of your home.
The pipes that make up an earth loop are usually made of polyethylene and can be buried under the ground horizontally or vertically, depending on the characteristics of the site. If an aquifer is available, we might design an “open loop” system, in which a well is drilled into the underground water. Water is pumped up, run past a heat exchanger, and then the water is returned to the same aquifer, through “reinjection.”
In winter, fluid circulating through the system’s earth loop or well absorbs stored heat from the ground and carries it indoors. The indoor unit compresses the heat to a higher temperature and distributes it throughout the building, as if it were an air conditioner running in reverse.
In summer, the geothermal HVAC system pulls heat from the building and carries it through the earth loop/pump to reinjection well, where it deposits the heat into the cooler earth/aquifer.
Unlike ordinary heating and cooling systems, geothermal HVAC systems do not burn fossil fuel to generate heat; they simply transfer heat to and from the earth. A geothermal cooling and heating system has three main components: the heat-pump unit, the liquid heat-exchange medium (open or closed loop), and the air-delivery system (ductwork) and/or the radiant heating (in the floor or elsewhere).
Geothermal heat pumps, as well as all other types of heat pumps, have efficiencies rated according to their coefficient of performance, or COP. It’s a scientific way of determining how much energy the system moves versus how much it uses. Most geothermal heat pump systems have COPs of 3.0 to 5.0. This means for every unit of energy used to power the system, three to five units are supplied as heat.
Geothermal systems require little maintenance. When installed properly, which is critical, the buried loop can last for generations. The unit’s fan, compressor, and pump are housed indoors, protected from the harsh weather conditions, so they tend to last for many years, often decades. Usually, periodic checks and filter changes and annual coil cleaning are the only required maintenance.
Burying a loop in the ground around your home is like owning your own oil well, but instead of pumping oil from an underground pool and burning it to create heat (and greenhouse gases), you tap into clean energy that will be there for as long as there is a sun. A well-designed ground loop will not hurt the earth or plants growing above it. There is no visible part to show that it is buried in your yard. If your system uses ground water, it has no effect on the water other than changing its temperature by a few degrees. Finally, a well-designed ground water system will not waste the water, but put it back into the ground.
Geothermal vs. Ground Water vs. Water Furnace
Geothermal energy has been used to heat and air condition buildings for several decades, and, during that time, these geothermal systems have been called many different things. Some of the more popular variations include geo-thermal, geoexchange, ground-water, ground-water assisted, ground-water-source, water-to-water. All of these terms, though, convey the same thought: use of geothermal heat pump technology to tap the energy in the earth’s surface and drive a heating and air conditioning system for both residential and commercial uses.
Geothermal Heating
During the heating cycle, your WaterFurnace geothermal heat pump uses the earth loop to extract heat from the ground. As the system pulls heat from the loop it distributes it through a conventional duct system as warm air. The same heat energy can also be used for a radiant floor system or domestic hot water heating.
Geothermal Cooling
In the cooling mode, the heating process is reversed – creating cool, conditioned air throughout the home. Instead of extracting heat from the ground, heat is extracted from the air in your home and either moved back into the earth loop, or used to preheat the water in your hot water tank.
Split Geothermal Systems
Provide installation flexibility with the capability to be installed with a remote air handler. WaterFurnace geothermal splits can be used to provide comfort for the entire home, or individual zones like the second story on a large home. Using geothermal split systems in conjunction with a fossil fuel furnace “turbocharges” the system for increased efficiency.
Hydronic Geothermal Systems
These units are designed for heating and cooling water in applications like: Radiant floor heating; Domestic hot water; Snow/Ice Melt . The modularized design and controls of WaterFurnace hydronic geothermal systems enable optimum capacity matching and staging.
A WaterFurnace Geothermal Heat Pump Is Simply Smarter
WaterFurnace geothermal heating and cooling systems come in three basic configurations, designed to meet the needs of your home and provide the highest efficiency and the greatest energy savings. And nearly all WaterFurnace products meet or exceed the Energy Star® requirements.
Geothermal heating is more efficient, more environmentally friendly, and costs less in the long run than pretty much any other home heating options. And as a bonus, it can provide more efficient air conditioning, pool heating, and hot water heating. Many insurance companies also offer a discount for geothermal heating because of the reduced fire risk.
Contact Larry at 1.613.659.4775 or email him at Larry@CanadianGeothermal.com
If you’d like to find out if Geothermal is a solution for your needs.
We will be pleased to visit you and provide an assessment of your heating and cooling needs.
