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What Federal Tax Credits Include
in Costs Read 280 times
Federal tax code clarity issues? No, it can't be.
I am not a CPA or tax attorney but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night so I feel more than qualified to comment on the issue.
Seriously though don't get it twisted and try to sue me for anything I say here.
While this topic is more boring than watching paint dry, it is of significant importance to anyone considering a GSHP system. The "issue" is the amount of the "system" that is included in the 30% federal tax credit.
Is a thermostat part of the system?…
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Buffer Tanks - Sizing for Geothermal Systems
in Installation Read 605 times
A buffer tank is an essential component of a water to water heat pump system. It's purpose is to prevent short cycling of the heat pump. Unlike modulating boilers, most heat pumps operate at full capacity when they are on and then shut down when the load is satisfies. Some have two stage compressors that allow the the heat pump to operate at a reduced capacity until the load requires full capacity. This helps to reduce cycling but a buffer tank is still needed.
There are several rules of thumb when it comes to sizing a buffer tank and depending…
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Geothermal Tax Credit Overview
in Costs Read 308 times
Overview
Right now is the absolute best time ever to be getting a geothermal heat pump system. With the newest economic stimulus from Washington DC, more money than ever is being allocated for renewable energy.
There is currently a 30% Federal Tax Credit available towards the installation of a geothermal heat pump system. That is money straight off the top of our taxes, and back into your pocket. This can make an absolutely huge difference in the overall decision for a geothermal system. If you can put 30% of the money it takes to install the system back into your…
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Being "Green" just to be "Green"
in Other Read 160 times
As a proponent of many renewable energy technologies I expect I will surprise and even irritate some people with my views on being green. So be it.
I believe that putting a large priority on reducing a carbon footprint can lead to bad decisions. I think that the results of these decisions can be bad for the economics of the situation, bad for progression of better energy solutions, and bad for the cause of energy independence.
I have had several discussions with friends and associates as to the role that ground source heat pumps play in terms of better energy…
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Undersized Ground Loop (Short Looped)
in Issues / Problems Read 640 times
Ground source heat pumps require a heat exchange with the earth that is of sufficient capacity to handle the seasonal loads that it will be subjected to. With closed loop systems the heat exchanger is built into the earth and will only affect the area that it is built into. If the heat exchange rate with the earth is too low for the system demands the heat pump will have reduced efficiency and capacity or may get to a point where it will not work at all.
If a geothermal heat pump system is unable to operate as designed due…
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DX Geothermal Part 5 - Costs
When it comes down to things, cost is usually the deciding factor for most people. Yeah some things about geothermal heat pumps are neat, but people just cannot afford to pay that much for them. DX geothermal systems are a whole different thing, and the overall life cost must be looked at, not just the initial installation cost.
DX geothermal systems will cost more to install initially than a standard forced air system, but the energy savings over time will save you thousands and thousands of dollars compared to what you would spend on operating costs of the standard system.…
in Other Tags: costs economics dx direct expansion dx geothermal Read 20 times
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DX Geothermal Part 4 - Advantages
Save Thousands per Year
Like all geothermal heat pump systems, heating will cost thousands of dollars less per year, which is money in your pocket. There are no more expensive heating fuels to buy, continually refill, or worry about their prices fluctuations.
You can save 50-70% annually on your heating costs. This means paying just a few hundred dollars to heat and cool your house for a full season, instead of the thousands you are used to. Just think of what you could do with all that extra money.
Small Ground Loop Footprint
This is one of the biggest advantages…
in Other Tags: advantages dx direct expansion dx geothermal Read 29 times
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DX Geothermal Part 3 - How Cooling Works
When a DX Geothermal system is in cooling mode, functions in the exact opposite as it does in heating mode, thanks to a reversing valve. It takes heat from your house and puts it into the ground. If you understand how a refrigerator or an air conditioner works, you can understand how a DX geothermal system can cool your house.It starts with heat from the house is absorbed into the cooler refrigerant loop. Then that hot refrigerant is cycled through the cold ground, and all its heat is expelled into the ground, again hot goes to cold. The refrigerant is…
in Other Tags: cooling dx direct expansion dx geothermal copper tubing Read 31 times
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DX Geothermal Part 2 - How Heating Works
When the DX Geothermal system is in heating mode, it simply takes heat from the earth, and puts it into your house. The refrigerant loop that runs through the ground is colder than the surrounding earth, so heat is absorbed from the earth into the refrigerant fluid. Hot goes to cold.That refrigerant fluid is cycled through the ground loop and into heat pump, where it is put through a compressor, which pressurizes it, and in turn, raises its temperature even more. That heat from the refrigerant loop is then transferred to your home distribution system either by an air handler…
in Other Tags: heating dx direct expansion dx geothermal copper tubing Read 28 times
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DX Geothermal Part 1 - The Basics
DX geothermal systems operate with the same basic principal as water source geothermal systems. The difference is in the construction of the earth loop. DX systems use copper tubing buried in the earth and circulate a refrigerant gas through the tubing. This changes the potential rate of heat exchange with the earth and allows for smaller earth loops per ton of heat pump capacity.
DX Geothermal
While the technology associated with DX has been around since the 1940's the systems have not seen the acceptance and growth that water source systems have. One reason for this is the proprietary and…
in Other Tags: geothermal basics dx direct exchange the basics copper Read 42 times
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DX Geothermal 7 Part Series
We have decided to start a 7 part series on DX Geothermal Systems (Direct Expansion). It is a moderately controversial issue throughout the industry, and many people have different views about it. Some people say that it flat out doesn't work. Others say there's no reason to go with a traditional geothermal system. We want to explore the basics of what it is, and hopefully start some dialogue about the subject.
This 7 part series will go over the basic information about DX geothermal for those who are unfamiliar with it. All of it has come from our own research…
in Other Tags: geothermal dx direct exchange direct expansion Diagonal Read 38 times
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Geothermal Advantages
There are many geothermal advantages over conventional systems. The primary one is the increased efficiencies and energy savings that they provide. Their operational efficiencies can exceed 400% and when you compare that to the very best boiler or furnace at 94% you can see some huge energy savings.
The reason that they can achieve these enormous efficiencies is that they do not create the heat energy that they provide. The sun created it, the earth absorbed it and the geothermal heat pump moved it. They use electricity to run a refrigeration cycle that transfers heat energy from one place to…
in Residential Tags: economics efficiency basics advantages incentives Read 182 times
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Ground Source Heat Pump
A ground source heat pump is a heat pump that uses the earth as its source of heat energy and its heat sink for coo
ling purposes. These systems are also called geothermal heat pumps and are becoming very popular due to the tremendous efficiencies with which they operate. The energy efficiencies of these units can be over 400% and this equates to large savings on energy bills.
A ground source heat pump uses an internal refrigeration cycle to remove heat from fluid that has been below the frost level in the earth. There are two basic ways to achieve…
in Residential Tags: ground loop efficiency basics how it works how heat pumps work Read 173 times
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Slinky Loop Construction
in Installation Tags: ground loop slinky horizontal slinky loop construction horizontal loop Read 753 times
Slinky loops are used in horizontal closed loop system. The name "slinky loops" comes from the shape that is created when the tubing is tied into concentric coils. The purpose of this procedure is to make the long lengths of pipe more managea
ble during installation and to be able to construct a consistent heat exchanger in a given amount of space. Not all horizontal closed loop systems are constructed in the slinky method, some just lay out the pipe in a down and back layout.
A slinky is most easily constructed by using a jig made out of plywood…
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Undersized Ground Loop (Short Looped)
in Issues / Problems Tags: ground loop sizing undersized short looped freezing up locked out Read 640 times
Ground source heat pumps require a heat exchange with the earth that is of sufficient capacity to handle the seasonal loads that it will be subjected to. With closed loop systems the heat exchanger is built into the earth and will only affect the area that it is built into. If the heat exchange rate with the earth is too low for the system demands the heat pump will have reduced efficiency and capacity or may get to a point where it will not work at all.
If a geothermal heat pump system is unable to operate as designed due…
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Buffer Tanks - Sizing for Geothermal Systems
in Installation Tags: sizing buffer tank water heater flow rate Read 605 times
A buffer tank is an essential component of a water to water heat pump system. It's purpose is to prevent short cycling of the heat pump. Unlike modulating boilers, most heat pumps operate at full capacity when they are on and then shut down when the load is satisfies. Some have two stage compressors that allow the the heat pump to operate at a reduced capacity until the load requires full capacity. This helps to reduce cycling but a buffer tank is still needed.
There are several rules of thumb when it comes to sizing a buffer tank and depending…
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Do Geothermal Systems need back up heat?
in Design Tags: back up supplemental design back up system boiler furnace Read 489 times
This is another often misunderstood topic. Some people insist that all geothermal heat pumps will need back up heat during extreme cold.
First lets separate back up heat from supplemental heat. Back up heat refers to a way of heating if the GSHP is down and out. It means that there is a second conventional source of heat that is there to take over if the geothermal heat pump is totally out of commission for whatever reason. Now that may seem ridiculous but I can assure you there are a lot of custom homes in the rocky mountain west that…
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Identifying "No-Brainer Situations"
in Costs Tags: economics ground loop open loop natural gas propane residential Read 430 times
Once a person starts looking into the potential applications of geothermal heat pumps it quickly becomes clear that there are widely varying costs associated with their installation. It is the nature of people to try to reduce everything down to averages or rules of thumb but this is not compatible with ground source heat pump systems. The reality is that there are situations where it makes little economic sense to install geothermal heat pump system and other situations where you would be crazy to not install one. Most situations fall somewhere in the middle and require people to look at…
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Sizing a Geothermal Heating System
in Design Tags: ground loop sizing oversize undersize short looped Read 328 times
There are a couple of different philosophies as to how to size a geothermal heat pump system.
The primary question is if the system should be sized to handle the highest loads that the structure will ever see or if it should be sized to handle the majority of the load but during peak loads a conventional element be used as a supplement.
For me the answer is one of economics. If the system were an open loop system and I had the available water to size the heat pump to handle the peak load then I would do that.…
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Geothermal Tax Credit Overview
in Costs Tags: economics tax credit federal incentives geothermal tax credit Read 308 times
Overview
Right now is the absolute best time ever to be getting a geothermal heat pump system. With the newest economic stimulus from Washington DC, more money than ever is being allocated for renewable energy.
There is currently a 30% Federal Tax Credit available towards the installation of a geothermal heat pump system. That is money straight off the top of our taxes, and back into your pocket. This can make an absolutely huge difference in the overall decision for a geothermal system. If you can put 30% of the money it takes to install the system back into your…
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Self-sustained heating = Geothermal + Radiant + Solar
in Design Tags: radiant heat solar thermal distribution systems solar ultimate heating system self sustained Read 308 times
Self-sustained heating systems:
The ultimate heating system would be on that is fully self sustaining and fully automated. Is this achievable you ask?
Yes, it is. By combining several renewable energy technologies it is not only theoretically achievable but may be more feasible that you would expect.
Geothermal heat pumps are extremely efficient at the task of heating and cooling a structure. Heat pumps run on electricity. There are a few ways to generate on site electricity with solar photovoltaic being the most common residential technology. In most situations it would not be practical or cost effective to put the…
