WaterFurnace Geothermal Comfort Systems
Heat and cool your home the smart way with a WaterFurnace system. Using the clean, free, renewable energy found just below the earth’s surface. WaterFurnace units do not rely on expensive, limited fossil fuels, which negatively impact our environment. WaterFurnace units can save you up to 70 percent on your heating and cooling costs while helping to protect our environment.
HOW DOES A GEOTHERMAL HEAT PUMP WORK?
Heat pumps don’t create heat. They take existing heat and move it. Anyone with a refrigerator has witnessed the operation of a heat pump. Refrigerators collect heat from the unit’s interior and move it to the exterior for cooling purposes. Unlike a refrigerator, a heat pump can reverse itself. An air-source heat pump, for example, can extract heat from outdoor air and pump it indoors for heating purposes.
A geothermal heat pump works the same way, except that its heat source is the warmth of the earth. The process of elevating low-temperature heat to over 100oF and transferring it indoors involves a cycle of evaporation, compression, condensation and expansion. A refrigerant is used as the heat-transfer medium which circulates within the heat pump. The cycle starts as the cold, liquid refrigerant passes through a heat exchanger (evaporator) and absorbs heat from the low-temperature source (fluid from the ground loop). The refrigerant evaporates into a gas as heat is absorbed.
The gaseous refrigerant then passes through a compressor where the refrigerant is pressurized raising its temperature to more than 180oF. The hot gas then circulates through a refrigerant-to-air heat exchanger where heat is removed and pumped into the building at about 100oF. When it loses the heat, the refrigerant changes back to a liquid. The liquid is cooled as it passes through an expansion valve and begins the process again. To work as an air conditioner, the system’s flow is reversed.
DOES A GEOTHERMAL SYSTEM HEAT AND COOL?
One thing that makes a geothermal heat pump so versatile is its ability to be a heating and cooling system in one. With a simple flip of a switch on your indoor thermostat, you can change from one mode to another. In the cooling mode, a geothermal heat pump takes heat from indoors and transfers it to the cooler earth through either groundwater or an underground earth loop system. In the heating mode, the process is reversed.
CAN A GEOTHERMAL SYSTEM ALSO HEAT WATER?
Yes. Some geothermal pumps can provide all of your hot water needs at the same high efficiencies as the heating /cooling cycles. An option called a hot water assist can be added to most heat pumps. It will provide significant savings by heating water before it enters your hot water tank.
Choosing a WaterFurnace Comfort System Is Simply Smarter
Heat & cool your home the smart way with a WaterFurnace geothermal comfort system using the clean, free, renewable energy found just below the earth’s surface. WaterFurnace units don’t rely on expensive, limited fossil fuels which negatively impact our environment. Thanks to energy efficiency ratings of 300-500%, WaterFurnace systems save many homeowners up to 70% in heating and cooling costs while helping to protect the environment. With outstanding energy efficiency, cost effectiveness, and environmental responsibility, it’s easy to see why a WaterFurnace geothermal system is “Smarter from the Ground Up.”
Energy Efficient
WaterFurnace geothermal systems are simply the most efficient units available. They can deliver up to five dollars of energy for every dollar of electrical energy used. That translates into an astounding efficiency rating of 500 percent, compared to the most efficient gas furnace, which rates only 97 percent.
Cost Effective
Because of the extraordinary efficiency of a WaterFurnace system, any added costs over an ordinary unit are usually more than offset by your monthly energy savings. In new homes, most homeowners experience an immediate positive return on their investment. In replacement installations, costs are usually recouped within just a few years.
Enviornmentally Friendly
WaterFurnace systems harness the free, renewable Energy in your own backyard to heat and cool your home. Installing a WaterFurnace system is the environmental equivalent of planting 750 trees, or removing two cars from the road. Additionally, WaterFurnace systems don’t burn fossil fuels or emit harmful greenhouse gases. That’s why the Environmental Protection Agency calls it the most environmentally friendly way to condition our homes.
Visit the WaterFurnace Knowledge Center for more information on Geothermal Energy
Geothermal Savings Calculator
Geothermal systems can be installed in a variety of homes – new or old, large or small, in warm climates or cold. Thanks to the Economic Recovery Act, there’s a 30% “renewable energy” tax credit for homeowners. To learn how a geothermal system will improve your home’s efficiency, try our savings calculator.
