Geothermal heat pump installation

[skyking]

I've been at my brother's new place installing a geothermal horizontal ground loop system.
I was able to use the company's equipment to do the job.

I have a thread over at another forum explaining the process.



http://ecorenovator.org/forum/geothermal/1575-new-geo-system-install.html#post13675

 

[alfa147x]

Those PowerShots always surprise me when it comes to image quality. I need to buy me a P&S one of these days...

 

[skyking]

That's too funny, the first post is about exif data......

 

[Squisher]

Geothermal is just the bee's knees. If I had skyking free labor I'd be all in. What was the drain pipe for?

 

[skyking]

Soil is fairly dry at 6' down. When you are compacting soil, it should be at an optimum moisture that varies according to soil composition.
I figured that good compaction equals good conduction, so I devised a scheme to keep things moist. I will hook any downspout drains and yard drains to the grid of drain pipe, located at 3' above the poly tubing.

 

[DougoMan]

I'm surprised you only had to go down 6'. I thought those systems went down like 50'.

Looks cool.

 

[ahenkel]

You can go vertical, but drilling can get a lot more expensive. We looked at it when we went to upgrade my grandpa's loop but he's got the land so we just went with a double 1200 foot loop.

 

[skyking]

I'm surprised you only had to go down 6'. I thought those systems went down like 50'.

Looks cool.

That would be a vertical system.

 

[Nebor]

That would be a vertical system.

Yeah, I have one of those in Louisiana and it blows. I have to have an additional air conditioner for the upstairs part of the house. I think it wasn't dug deep enough.

 

[highland145]

What's the real world cost and area needed for it? Thanks.

 

[wwswimming]

what is the pipe made of ?

it looks like plastic because of the way it's bending.

does the thermal conductivity of the tubing material not matter so much in a system like this ?

i could understand copper and aluminum might be expensive, but steel could be cheaper, though with rust issues.

 

[skyking]

What's the real world cost and area needed for it? Thanks.

If I recall properly, it gets hot everywhere in S.C.
Let's say a typical home needs 4 tons of cooling there.
600' of poly pipe per ton, 1 square foot per foot of pipe, a 2400 sq. foot hole.
Slice that any way you want, 60 x 40, 30 x 80, 20 x 120, even longer trenches but it gets to be a hassle IMO.
Another area about 20% larger nearby to stack the dirt.
It is not suited for most city lots that is for sure.

You can get a kit from these folks for less than 10K. If I were billing for this, my portion for this job would be in excess of 3K.

http://ingramswaterandair.com/heati....html?osCsid=1f469667ddbc94df96733d88885f894a

 

[vi edit]

I'm a bit scared of geothermal. Both people I know that have it had their exhangers crap out in 7-10 years to the tune of like $4000. Eek. Maybe the indoor tech is improving but I'm not totally convinced on it's lifetime savings.

 

[paperfist]

That would be a vertical system.

But that system you are using is down deep enough to get the benefits of what a vertical would offer?

What temps would you be pulling from that?

Nice looking soil btw

 

[highland145]

If I recall properly, it gets hot everywhere in S.C.
Let's say a typical home needs 4 tons of cooling there.
600' of poly pipe per ton, 1 square foot per foot of pipe, a 2400 sq. foot hole.
Slice that any way you want, 60 x 40, 30 x 80, 20 x 120, even longer trenches but it gets to be a hassle IMO.
Another area about 20% larger nearby to stack the dirt.
It is not suited for most city lots that is for sure.

You can get a kit from these folks for less than 10K. If I were billing for this, my portion for this job would be in excess of 3K.

http://ingramswaterandair.com/heati....html?osCsid=1f469667ddbc94df96733d88885f894a

Hot? Yes. 90's this week and no rain. My lot is 75'x150' with a house in the middle and a 12x20 outbuilding. Looks like a no go for me.

Is the $$ savings over the live of the unit/install worth it?

I really like the idea. Maybe one day if we move.

 

[vi edit]

Hot? Yes. 90's this week and no rain. My lot is 75'x150' with a house in the middle and a 12x20 outbuilding. Looks like a no go for me.

Is the $$ savings over the live of the unit/install worth it?

I really like the idea. Maybe one day if we move.

That's when you go verticle. They drill several holes that are a couple hundred feet deep, drop in your exchange loops and then fill with concrete. Takes up a couple sq/ft per hole. Small footprint....big price tag.

 

[Nebor]

That's when you go verticle. They drill several holes that are a couple hundred feet deep, drop in your exchange loops and then fill with concrete. Takes up a couple sq/ft per hole. Small footprint....big price tag.

I don't think the holes are nearly that deep, are they? I thought they were ~60ft.

 

[vi edit]

I don't think the holes are nearly that deep, are they? I thought they were ~60ft.

Vertical installs are 75-500 feet. The deeper you go, the more temperature you can exchange by surface area.

 

[skyking]

But that system you are using is down deep enough to get the benefits of what a vertical would offer?

What temps would you be pulling from that?

Nice looking soil btw

Below 3 feet the soil temperature averages 53 degrees.
This system is better than a typical vertical system because with vertical the tendency is to skimp on loops, they are so pricey.

 

[paperfist]

Below 3 feet the soil temperature averages 53 degrees.
This system is better than a typical vertical system because with vertical the tendency is to skimp on loops, they are so pricey.

That's pretty impressive. If I had a loop like that I would only need the boiler to heat the water another 15 degrees. That's got to be a huge cost savings.