geothermal (ground) heat-pump installation

Geothermal heat-pumps installation is a professional job. Installers should be certified and experienced. Non-professional installations may result in a lower efficiency.

How long it takes to install a ground heat pump?

A typical installation can be completed in one, two or three days, but all depends on soil conditions, and on the length and depth of pipe or on the required equipment.

Ground pipes and space available

Ground Heat Pump You need some space outside or/and below your house for the ground pipes. The ground should support drilling and digging a trench or borehole.

Horizontal And vertical ground pipes

Geothermal heat pumps demand a vertical or an horizontal pipe, which may depend on specific geological, hydrological and landscape issues, and also on the available amount of ground. Loop lengths between 250 and 1,000 feet (75m and 300m) per ton of capacity are common. But that may vary significantly: in a soil with good heat transfer the horizontal piping do not need to be as long as in a soil with poor heat transfer properties...

Horizontal installations (in which pipes are buried horizontally at 4-6 feet deep) are often simpler, but they require longer lengths of pipe and land.

Where land is limited or where there is an accessible rock shelf, vertical installations are preferable.

Though vertical pipes usually imply a more expensive installation, they are usually more efficient. In areas with extensive hard rock or soil too shallow to trench, a vertical loop is the ideal.

For schemes on types of pipes, see: Geothermal Heat Pumps

Heat pumps and insulation

Heat pumps efficiency - like the efficiency of other equipments - demands a proper insulation. Systems may not work well in homes with a poor wall insulation, or a poor floor and attic insulation.

Heating and cooling distribution

Ground source heat pumps can be combined with radiators, or involve under floor heating and cooling.

underground loops and the landscape

Most horizontal installations require trenches about six inches wide which may perturb the nearby landscape. But temporarily damaged areas are rapidly and easily restored. Vertical loops require smaller horizontal space, and consequently aren't a cause of significant landscape damaging.

Fluids in the polyethylene pipe…

The underground loop is commonly a closed polyethylene pipe. These pipes are filled with an environmentally-friendly antifreeze/water solution that acts as a heat exchanger: in cold weather the fluid in the pipes extracts heat from the earth, while in summer the system takes heat from the building and carries it to the ground.

Ductwork and heat pumps

Unless you want a ductless mini split system, heat pumps demand ducts, which usually need to be larger than those of other central heating systems. Typical air flow should be 50 to 60 liters per second per kilowatt-hour (or, in other words, 400-500 cubic foot per minute and ton of cooling capacity).

Installation while home retrofitting and building

Installers should be certified and experienced. Non-professional installations may result in a lower efficiency.

If you are going to retrofit or build a new house, so much the better: the installation costs will substantially lower.

Insurance policy

Geothermal heat pumps are usually covered under the homeowner's insurance policy. But it’s better to contact your insurance company to confirm it (and ask them an addition to the policy covering, if it is the case).