Geothermal Energy is great stuff … Put It to Use
The easiest is to tap directly into the heated water at the surface. It's gets there due to hydrothermal convection. Hydrothermal Convection - is where cold water seeps into volcanically heated substrate, heated and comes back to the surface. The principal is simple – heat rises. Another is to drill a deep well and tap directly into the hot steam. The last is exchanging its heat with another medium. This is interesting stuff and all, but not very many of us will ever have the necessity or the $$ to drill thousands of feet to collect steam to heat a three bedroom home. So if you want more information about this form of energy, I suggest you investigate the Geothermal Technologies Programs at Geothermal and Geo-Powering the West. Both are U.S. Department of Energy sites. This is not an exhaustive list, but it is representative of how Geothermal Energy is used:
Classified as a renewable resource, Geothermal Energy is as common as the dirt under your feet. However, you may not live in an area where bubbling hot springs exist, so how can you benefit by it? You can use the temperature stability of the ground in your back yard, ten feet down. The grounds temperature will vary depending on which region your reside. The ground temperature may be somewhat cooler in the northern region than the southern. Another factor is a soils thermal properties. This varies due to the type of soils found from region to region. A soil might be sand, loam, clay, silt, or a combination, and whether it’s dry or saturated with water. Then the soils heat capacity, which is its ability to store solar energy. The deeper you go the more stable the temperature. Basically, this simply means, get below the frost line. Nevertheless, underground temperatures stabilize at approximately 55 degrees below the frost line. Actually, that’s the national average; it varies from 45 in one region to 75 degrees in another. So whether the soil is sand, clay or silt, or the surface air temperature drops to 20 below, or climbs to 110 in the shade, the regions ground temperature will remain constant. So if you’re still curious about Geothermal Energy, you will probably find heat pump technology of the most interest. Geothermal Heat Pumps (GHP) are sometimes called geo-exchange, ground-source, earth-coupled, or water-sourced systems. Estimates indicate that nearly a half million homes, schools and businesses use GHP’s to keep comfortable. Also, the EPA rates GHP’s as the most efficient heating systems available. Okay, so what’s so different about a Geothermal Heat Pump, verses a air-to-air pump? First off, the constant ground temperature provides an excellent environment for a GHP to operate. Air-to-air systems are far less efficient because the air’s temperature is constantly changing. Another draw back is operating an air-to-air system in colder climates where temperatures fall to 25 or 30 below. In this case, an electric or gas-heating systems is required as a backup. Air-to-air systems have one other problem: the coils collect ice in the outside air. So periodically, the pump must reverse itself to melt the ice. This can be bothersome unless a backup system is available. Anyway, those who are truly serious about using this resource will save money. And the amount saved will more than make up for the initial cost, within a shorter period than with any other system. Indirect use as in GHP’s or an Under Ground Stabilized Heat Pump (UGSHP)Types of Heat Pumps
Geothermal Energy is a fascinating branch of science. It’s kind-a like, it’s right there - under our feet. What I like is the 35 to 70% real dollar savings using a UGSHP. In my opinion, it’s worth a look-see. Link:  Custom Search
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