Ground Source Heat Pumps

The harnessing of geothermal heat has been used in domestic central heating systems for a number of years. In fact, human beings have utilised the natural energy of underground heat for many tens of thousands of years. Moreover, as greater attention is paid to improving the environment, geothermal heat is looked at as one of the many ways in which the burning of fossil fuels can be replaced by a clean renewable alternative. Green Energy

Indeed, the environment is generally thought to be suffering at the hands of humanity as large quantities of the so-called greenhouse gases - especially CO2 - make their way into the atmosphere. Unfortunately, greenhouse gases are known to destroy the ozone layer, which protects life on Earth from harmful cosmic rays. In the case of geothermal heat, which is stored deep underground, the sun is able to replenish any heat extracted for human needs, which cannot be said for fossil fuels.

The mechanisms of a domestic geothermal heating system are quite complex, although no more so than an existing central heating boiler setup. Employing the use of a ground source heat pump, which circulates a mixture of water and antifreeze around a ground loop pipe that is buried underneath the garden, a geothermal heating system is able to extract the natural heat that is trapped underground.

A ground source heat pump may extend some 100 metres beneath the surface and is measured by a coefficient of performance (CoP) that compares the amount of heat produced with the electricity used to run the system. Ground source heat pumps can save money in the long term and reduce household carbon emissions by around 540Kg each year.