Are you ready to go beyond the “small steps” to go green?
If you’re like many energy conscious consumers, you’ve already switched to CFL light bulbs. You’ve installed a programmable thermostat. And your appliances are all Energy Star rated. It’s true… small steps really do add up.
But maybe you’re ready for a big change in how you heat and cool your home.
If so, Dominique Durbin and the team at Durbin Geothermal, Beecher City, IL, are ready to show you how a Geothermal System can cut your energy use by as much as 60%.
How Is a Geothermal System Green Energy?
According to the EPA, CO2 emissions from the average American household make up more than 17% of the U.S. total emissions. Most of this pollution is a result of burning fossil fuels for electricity.
While technology keeps presenting new sources of renewable energy, geothermal heating has been around since the time of the Roman Empire. The Romans used it as a way of heating buildings and spas using hot water and steam from sources just under the surface of the earth.
The benefit of geothermal is that your home is warmed with the natural heat of the earth. Geothermal heat pumps use anywhere from 30% – 60% less energy than a traditional HVAC system. A geothermal energy system can heat your water and can even be used to cool your home.
How Does a Geothermal Heat Pump Work?
A geothermal heat pump pulls the natural heat from the earth up to your home. Although the air temperature changes from season to season, the temperature just beneath the earth’s surface stays relatively consistent. In Missouri, the temperature 30 feet below the earth’s surface is about 58 degrees all year round. Through a ground heat exchanger, the pump can heat cool and supply hot water to your entire home
This ground loop is a buried system of pipes that serves as a combination radiator and battery. When the home is too warm, it pumps the excess into the ground and stores it there until the heat is needed again. When the heating and cooling loads are balanced, it simply transfers heat back and forth as necessary.
Who Can Install a Geothermal System?
It’s important to look for a licensed heating contractor who follows the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) recommendations, state codes, and local regulations.
Dominique Durbin says most often problems occur due to miscommunication between the company and the homeowner. Durbin says, “Sometimes people are not aware of how we are going to install several hundred feet of pipe in their yard. When we show up with a drilling rig or an excavator, it can seem shocking at first to someone who has not been properly prepared.”
During the St. Louis Builders Home and Garden Show, Durbin will present his seminar, “Geothermal – How Exactly Do You Plan To Do That?” to show the methods used in the loop field installation business and the pros and cons of each.
Durbin says it’s also important to locate all buried wires and cables before digging begins. When a call is placed to Dig Right, JULIE, or Missouri One Call, homeowners believe everything buried in their yard will be marked. Unfortunately, those services only locate public utilities, not private. This often creates problems with the satellite TV lines, sprinkler system, propane lines, etc.
The Future: Heat Clean, Cool Green with Green Building Products
Dominique and the group at Durbin Geothermal have seen first-hand the countless benefits of geothermal heating. “Beyond doubt, ground source geothermal heat pumps are the future of space conditioning,” Durbin says. “The demand has continued to grow since 2000, when my father was building his house and was told there was a six-month wait before a loop field could be installed.”
The Durbins took matters into their own hands, adding a drilling rig to their successful trucking and excavation company and doing the work themselves. They have since sold or ceased their other business efforts and operate seven drilling rigs and a full compliment of loop related excavating and support equipment. “Geothermal is now our only business.”
Watch for Durbin Geothermal at the St. Louis Builders Home and Garden Show and read more about how other green building products can reduce your home energy consumption.
Comments on this entry are closed.