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I am familiar with earth-sheltered homes. The problem is your house looks like a hill and some of us would prefer a little more individual expression than that. Also your windows are limited and inside tunnels.
Best design I've heard is to have a U-shaped house built around a patio and walls of glass with curtains so as to allow maximum sunlight and you don't feel like you're inside a cave. Dirt is piled up around the outside walls of the U and covered with grass and flowers and landscaping. A community of such homes would be like a park with a number of small hills where the houses are.
The other thing that can help is to site the house so it fits into the landscape so it uses its features to protect the contents from the worst of the weather and it uses the best of nature (passive solar, cooling winds, etc.)
My only disagreement with this statement is the word OTHER. It should be the PRIMARY.
I lived in a house, in town, built in 1956 in Idaho with these principals in mind. It looked just like a normal house, but those little design features made living in that house energy efficient and just plain more comfortable to live.
That convinced me. After that it has been tough living in houses that are NOT "designed with nature".
Location: Central Atlantic Region, though consults worldwide
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CAllenDoudna
Anywhere you are on the Earth's surface, 10 feet (3 meters) underground the temperature is a constant 55-60 degrees F (12-15 degrees C) year round. Bury a pipe at this depth and run water through it. The earth will heat the water to this temperature for free and without pollution. You can then run air over the water pipe in what is called a heat exchanger and then use that pre-warmed (or pre-cooled) air in your ventilation system lowering the cost of heating (or cooling) your house.
You got it. I don't necessarily agree with your numbers but you are definitely on the right track. Check out some of my posts because I wrote about using ground circulated water to cool a concrete constructed home.
Location: Central Atlantic Region, though consults worldwide
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DCforever
Not quite, but geothermal systems have very high efficiency. The issue is capital cost. They are substantially more expensive to install than a conventional system. Correctly installing that pipe in the ground is more involved than you realize.
DCforever is correct.
I have installed quite a few Ground source systems and the piping systems, though simple, involves an inordinate amount of work and cost. What many fail to realize is climate and site drainage conditions change over time. So, if coil calcs relies on certain heat transfer conditions of soil differ in future, then systems efficiencies will also degrade.
Ground source, frankly, the best if having a pond or like water source nearby. Not that one would use the water directly, rather just to lay the pipes directly into the water.
The last several years I have been testing direct exchange ground source systems. These systems embed the refrigerant lines into the ground eliminating many hundreds of feet of water circulating lines. Ordinary water circ line range from 350-500 (or more) per cooling ton (12,000 btus). At 500 feet, that 24 btus per lineal feet of single pipe, or pipes if in parallel.
With DX systems they work best with high mass direct burial chambers AND highly efficient buildings. DX can inject/extract many time more the amount of heat using fewer resources. The great thing is that a field does not have to be dug up to bury pipes.
I will say if funding a solid geothermal make sound economic & energy sense I would first consider the DX and other that goes with this tech before going with the water coupled units. However, if the latter, then pursue more serial; parallel piping so as to minimize water pumping head losses. I have seen some water loops that installers had to install swimming pool pumps on because of very high line pressure necessary to move the required amount of water.
Back in the early 80's I merged water coupled heat pump with an indoor swimming pool. The pool was a great source for cooling mode because the pool owner wanted body temperature water in the pool. Essentially heating the water was free relative to cooling his home. The point here is when engaging this type of tech do not omit opportunity for using discharge heat or cooling from the bigger energy picture. You may be amazed how much these machines are capable if you have the right needs.
Back in the early 80's I merged water coupled heat pump with an indoor swimming pool. The pool was a great source for cooling mode because the pool owner wanted body temperature water in the pool. Essentially heating the water was free relative to cooling his home. The point here is when engaging this type of tech do not omit opportunity for using discharge heat or cooling from the bigger energy picture. You may be amazed how much these machines are capable if you have the right needs.
I currently heat my pool using passive solar and heat/cool my home using geothermal with vertical ground loops. Is there a way to heat my pool using geothermal ground loops instead of the solar? Do you know anyone in the NC area who does this?
Always been interested in Geothermal, but never lived in an area that it made sense. Since I live on a mountain, I'd have to go a whole lot further down than I willing to, to even find water. And then the cost of insulating it would be crazy. As it is a friend has well water and I have city water. BOTH of us get water out of the tap in the 30s. Would be awesome for my Miami home, not so much for my Alaska home.
Now if only I lived near one of those natural hot springs...
Location: Central Atlantic Region, though consults worldwide
266 posts, read 449,572 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RDUBiker
I currently heat my pool using passive solar and heat/cool my home using geothermal with vertical ground loops. Is there a way to heat my pool using geothermal ground loops instead of the solar? Do you know anyone in the NC area who does this?
RDUBIKER,
I won't to far into particulars but can another time.
Shop online for a water to water stainless steel heat exchanger. Whatever the tonnage of your ground system match Btu capacity. Keep it simple. Believe me going the nth degree does not produce much more efficiency than you are gaining from the system currently.
You will need to route the pools circulation pump through your water heat exchanger. You will not need to do any auto control valving. You will however need a pump "Run Status feedback. More about that shortly.
Routing the pool circ will be a permanent connection. If you have one of those 50 gpm circ pumps on the pool then divert some of that flow capacity through the exchanger. I wish I knew how to insert pictures here I could send you it.
Anyway, inside at your GSHP you will insert 3-way valves that switch from earth loop to input side of the heat exchanger.
Those valves will automatically switch when a call for air conditioning and pool circ feedback is on.
Suppose you are finished with the pool for the season and the weather is still light. It is possible to use pool water though in the house heating mode you will be extracting heat from the pool water. There will become a time when pool water temp is not conducive for the refrigerant charge and cause system interruptions.
However, when the weather is nice and you want to heat the pool to body temp... have at it, I cannot think any greater synergistic benefit than your desire.
Don't get me wrong with the above description... there it is something you may or may not do on your own. One of the imprortant things is that you do not intro air into the earth loop. Make sure you have a way to refil and bleed air before acting. All in all technically its a breeze for thos who know these systems. Does not necessarily mean thy will cooperate with doing so especially if they don't do it or if there is a warrranty period remaining.
Like I say, I still have just exactly what you are asking in operation today that I did in 1983, without call backs.
Location: Central Atlantic Region, though consults worldwide
266 posts, read 449,572 times
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Dakster,
Not so. Alaska is a great place for DX ground source. True you may have to go deep (like maybe 100') but most certainly it will work there. Depending were you are in Alaska, I would consider encasing the lines in concrete due to seismic activity in the region.
DX systems use direct refrigerant line heat exchangers rather than circulating water or antifreeze with normal GSHPs.
I won't to far into particulars but can another time.
Shop online for a water to water stainless steel heat exchanger. Whatever the tonnage of your ground system match Btu capacity. Keep it simple. Believe me going the nth degree does not produce much more efficiency than you are gaining from the system currently.
You will need to route the pools circulation pump through your water heat exchanger. You will not need to do any auto control valving. You will however need a pump "Run Status feedback. More about that shortly.
Routing the pool circ will be a permanent connection. If you have one of those 50 gpm circ pumps on the pool then divert some of that flow capacity through the exchanger. I wish I knew how to insert pictures here I could send you it.
Anyway, inside at your GSHP you will insert 3-way valves that switch from earth loop to input side of the heat exchanger.
Those valves will automatically switch when a call for air conditioning and pool circ feedback is on.
Suppose you are finished with the pool for the season and the weather is still light. It is possible to use pool water though in the house heating mode you will be extracting heat from the pool water. There will become a time when pool water temp is not conducive for the refrigerant charge and cause system interruptions.
However, when the weather is nice and you want to heat the pool to body temp... have at it, I cannot think any greater synergistic benefit than your desire.
Don't get me wrong with the above description... there it is something you may or may not do on your own. One of the imprortant things is that you do not intro air into the earth loop. Make sure you have a way to refil and bleed air before acting. All in all technically its a breeze for thos who know these systems. Does not necessarily mean thy will cooperate with doing so especially if they don't do it or if there is a warrranty period remaining.
Like I say, I still have just exactly what you are asking in operation today that I did in 1983, without call backs.
Great Post! If you want more just ask.
Wow, this sounds great, but I am not capable of doing it myself. What type of contractor would be likely to consider doing something like this and what would you estimate cost being?
Location: Central Atlantic Region, though consults worldwide
266 posts, read 449,572 times
Reputation: 95
Quote:
Originally Posted by RDUBiker
Wow, this sounds great, but I am not capable of doing it myself. What type of contractor would be likely to consider doing something like this and what would you estimate cost being?
A pool guy/plumber for the pool side connections of the heat exchanger; the contractor who installed the Grd Source Heat Pump side of heat exchanger.
The stainless steel heat exchanger is necessary due to the pool's chloinated water.
DM me and I can send you a simple detail on piping and controls necessary to do the job.
You are certainly welcome.
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