Geothermal... ANYONE!!!

**JAX04** · 03-17-2009, 07:02 PM

so i just to let all of you know. I am a geothermal expert, (for the most part) so if anyone in the great lakes. ie. indiana, ohio, illinois, kentucky, michigan, is looking for or have any questions about geothermal. please dont hesitate to ask. if i dont know the answer right away it wont take me long to get. i aslo do installs as well. so if you all need anything. just ask

**Modulistic** · 03-17-2009, 08:37 PM

do you drill for heat or do heat exchange coils in the topsoil?

**1MileCrash** · 03-17-2009, 09:26 PM

would it be feasible for a power company to build a large geothermal plant say in wisconsin...pump water into the ground, heat it with the earth, and then have the steam run turbines at the surface before being pumped back into the ground again? or would it not be realistic given the terrain and topography...i mean...the bedrock of granite retains a lot of heat if i'm not mistaken and the wolf river batholith is very near the surface in north central wisconsin so i would assume that that would be a good heat transfer point.

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 04:08 AM

the problem would be heating the water back up. it would take extreme depths to create that situation. most geothermal POWER plants are built with existing fissures. and sorry to dissapoint. that is not my area of expertise. im talking about geothermal Heating and Cooling. Series of underground pipes carrying water to transport heat from one place to another. IE. your house to ground

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 04:11 AM

Originally Posted by Modulistic

do you drill for heat or do heat exchange coils in the topsoil?

there are many different applications, if i were dealing with a lot that has little yard space or just has too many hurdles in the way, we would drill a 6" hole in the ground and insert a uni-coil. (one pipe down- one pipe back up) that would move the water. this application is best is places like michigan. only becuase the ground freezes so far down, it doesnt make sense to stick my men in a ditch that is 7 or 8 feet deep. but here in central indiana where we have a nice climate, ive never seen it freeze more then 18 inches (naturally undisturbed soil) we use a horizontal style. with pipes buried at 5 feet and 3 feet. 3 pipes send the solution and 3 pipes return the solution.

**0verkill** · 03-18-2009, 04:38 AM

so what is invalved with puting one in my home and the cost of it?

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 06:51 AM

well, before i could answer that i would need to know some things first. how many square feet is your home. do you happen to know the specific heat loss and heat gain of your home. i could recomend someone in the area to find these things out. or i just give you a kinda of cookie cutter idea if that what your looking for. go outside and tell me what the model number of your air conditioner is and also what size your furnace is. would you also say that you have addiquit airflow in your home. IE. consistant temperatures throught the house. if not what the problem. these are things that would need to be addressed. but tell me your A/C size and the btu of your furnace. and ill give you a good idea.

**third_shift|studios** · 03-18-2009, 06:55 AM

Originally Posted by JAX04

well, before i could answer that i would need to know some things first. how many square feet is your home. do you happen to know the specific heat loss and heat gain of your home. i could recomend someone in the area to find these things out. or i just give you a kinda of cookie cutter idea if that what your looking for. go outside and tell me what the model number of your air conditioner is and also what size your furnace is. would you also say that you have addiquit airflow in your home. IE. consistant temperatures throught the house. if not what the problem. these are things that would need to be addressed. but tell me your A/C size and the btu of your furnace. and ill give you a good idea.

very interesting stuff...definately revolutionary.

so does the ground below the 18" freezeline stay warm then?

**Y2KArcticSS** · 03-18-2009, 07:26 AM

Pretty cool stuff. Our architecture department just finished designing the first house in the Tulsa area to be LEED certified, and it has a 'geothermal heat source', among other things. I will see if I can find the PDF file of the flyer, and convert it to JPEG to post here.

It's not real in depth, but it explains a bit. If you would like to elaborate on the details of geothermal heat sources for homes, I would be interested. Subscribed.

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 07:40 AM

Originally Posted by third_shift|studios

very interesting stuff...definately revolutionary.

so does the ground below the 18" freezeline stay warm then?

but still, to each area there own. im being told that the freeze line actually a little deeper, but yes, the ground below any given frost line stays consistent to at around 55 degrees F. and the idea is that we use the ground like a heat sink. when its cold outside we take the cold out of your house like a refrigerator. (hot air at your feet) and when its hot out we take the heat out to the ground. basically moving heat from one place to another. 400% efficient.

**GULLETT17** · 03-18-2009, 07:51 AM

Originally Posted by JAX04

well, before i could answer that i would need to know some things first. how many square feet is your home. do you happen to know the specific heat loss and heat gain of your home. i could recomend someone in the area to find these things out. or i just give you a kinda of cookie cutter idea if that what your looking for. go outside and tell me what the model number of your air conditioner is and also what size your furnace is. would you also say that you have addiquit airflow in your home. IE. consistant temperatures throught the house. if not what the problem. these are things that would need to be addressed. but tell me your A/C size and the btu of your furnace. and ill give you a good idea.

i had a excel spreadsheet that figured heat loss and gain of a home (by entering square footages, r values, u values of windows, etc) but my computer took a shit.
let say to give an idea. . . 1200sq ft home, 1 story, r13 batting in walls, r-20-25 in ceilings (older homes usually dont meet code), 10 2'x3' windows with u value of .33. 70000 btu furnace

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 08:56 AM

wow, get crazy with it. i was hopeing you were gonna already know the loads. give me a little while and ill figure that out.

**GULLETT17** · 03-18-2009, 09:01 AM

Originally Posted by JAX04

wow, get crazy with it. i was hopeing you were gonna already know the loads. give me a little while and ill figure that out.

hahaha. . . . well i was just tryin to paint the picture of a "common" house and most people prob dont know how to figure theyre loss and gain

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 09:10 AM

yeah, your right. its gonna take me a little considering all my HVAC contractors call me with the loads already done. not a big deal. just got to enlist a little help.

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 09:15 AM

i would say typically speaking with a common size home. (36000 btu air conditioner) that you are proabbaly looking at around 10-15k +/- a few K. but that is all dependent on the layout of your land and what type of equip. your opting for. but that will usually get you done. if your currently heating with gas, then i would expect to see a payback in the 3-5 year range. there is a 30% tax credit for geothermal right now. plus about 90% of local power companies(REMC) give a rebate of some kind. and i would expect someone with a house to todays standard. or maybe a little less. would pay around 900-1300 a year to heat and cool there home. when i put mine in, i saved 185 dollars a month on my utility bills during the winter. Dont forget most geo units will also heat about 75% of your hot water as well.

**JAX04** · 03-18-2009, 09:17 AM

Originally Posted by third_shift|studios

very interesting stuff...definately revolutionary.

so does the ground below the 18" freezeline stay warm then?

funny thing is, the first geothermal system ever recorded was in Sweeden in 1912.

**87rocket** · 03-18-2009, 12:58 PM

Taking the LEED AP exam tomorrow morining....

**Y2KArcticSS** · 03-18-2009, 01:04 PM

Originally Posted by 87rocket

Taking the LEED AP exam tomorrow morining....

We recently had a couple people take and pass it. I have yet to even bother. I just got over taking my Oklahoma LSI exam in October, and I need to start studying for my PLS exam soon.

Good luck