How Do Geothermal HVAC Systems Work?
You need to go about 60 feet under the surface of the earth in order to take advantage of the earth’s stable temperatures. Geothermal HVAC systems use geothermal ground loops made of high-strength polyethylene pipes that are filled with water or in the north, anti-freeze. These are buried in the ground and then the liquid is circulated through them and into the geothermal unit in your home, extracting or dumping heat from or into the ground in order to heat or cool your house. This geothermal HVAC setup differs from the typical HVAC system that utilizes an indoor unit that contains a fan and cooling coil. Typical HVAC units use the fan to push air over the coil. The coil then heats or cools that air and then distributes it through the duct system and on into the home. However, there is more to these systems than just the inside unit. The second half of the typical HVAC system is the large compressor outside of the home which functions to dissipate the warm or cold air out of the house.
