Geothermal

Geothermal heat pumps have varying names but they all are referring to the same thing. Here are most of the names you will see. Ground source heat pumps, geo-exchange heat pumps, water-to-air heat pumps and water to water heat pumps.

How they work
A Geothermal heat pump is an electrically powered machine that works in harmony with the sun and the earth to provide heating, cooling and assists in making hot water for your home while saving you up to 70% on your energy cost. It does not require an outdoor unit. It has a series of specially designed pipes buried in the earth called a ground loop or heat exchanger. Fluid is circulated through these pipes to gather heat from the earth and converts it to warm air to provide winter heating. The heat which is removed during this process is then replenished by the sun. In the summer it simply reverses this process and takes the heat from inside your home and puts it in the ground.

Hot water
Not only will they provide heating and cooling but they will also help to provide hot water with an optional desuperheater. This is a factory installed option that will help you save up to 50% on your hot water cost.

Ground loop
The material used for the ground loop is a high density polyethylene pipe that has been used in underground applications for years by the natural gas industry. There are no mechanical connections to fail and the pipe will not rot, rust or corrode. Once the loop is installed and filled with approximately 75 to 100 gallons of heat transfer fluid which is determined by the size of the loop, it does not require any more water during operation. The average life of a geothermal heat pump is 20 to 22 years and the ground loop has a 55 year leak free warranty.

Available Geothermal Heat Pump Tax Credits
30% federal tax credit with no maximum limit through 2016 and any unused balance may be applied to future tax years until 2016. Geothermal tax credit for North Carolina is 35% up to $8400.