5 ms·

> Good heat pumps aren't of the air conditioner type. Our heat pump uses two 60m deep drilled holes. Thus heat exchange happens in the ground, which is always

by elric 5y ago

> Good heat pumps aren't of the air conditioner type. Our heat pump uses two 60m deep drilled holes. Thus heat exchange happens in the ground, which is always more or less 10 degrees Celsuis. Good point. The source and destination of heat can be air, water, or "ground source". But it's still all just the same concept as A/C units. Pump heat to one place, using less energy than what it would take to heat it using resistance heating. There is nothing special about ground source heat pumps, except that they're a pain to install in densely populated areas. All types of heat pumps, unfortunately, often leak. Depending on the type of refrigerant they use, this can be a serious climate concern as well.

jcynix 5y ago
There's no refrigerant here. Our heat pump uses plain water mixed with an anti-freezing agent. Just like the cooler in a car does. And there are control displays where you control all operating parameters. As for the "pump heat from here to there" ... while we are cooling we are warming the ground below. And as at our place, the ground's consistency keeps the warmth rather local, we reuse it later when we warm our water during the night. We do live in a densely populated area and about every fifth hoiuse built here during the last 10 years uses a ground-based heat pump. As for electricity use: each house has two hours of "blockage" where the pump is not allowed to run, so that the power lines aren't stressed. That's no problem at all, because all houses are highly insulated and thus buffer rather good.
- bluGill 5y ago
  There is refrigerant there. It is contained inside the system, and only your water mix leaves, but there is still refrigerant inside and it can leak.
  - jcynix 5y ago
    That's correct. I was comparing our system to existing systems which directly use a refrigerant sent into the ground loop. Our heat pump itself is a closed system just as a refrigerator, and works indirectly via the water cycle used outside.
PeterisP 5y ago
The special thing about ground source heat pumps is, well, that they use ground instead of air - and it turns out to be a really important thing because of the temperature differences between ground and air. A/C or heat pump efficiency is directly related to the temperature difference over which you're trying to pump. If the temperature difference is twice as large, you need to spend twice as much energy to pump the same amount of heat. Furthermore, the days where you need a heat pump (or A/C) the most are the peak cold/heat days where the temperature difference between your house and the air is much larger than usual. Because of this, a ground source heat pump can do the same thing by spending much less power than an air source heat pump, so it is "greener" - though the installation is more cumbersome and expensive.
- scotty79 5y ago
  However there are air heat pumps which differ from the AC ran in reverse only in how the heat is distributed around the house. For example with warm water in the pipes not just blowing warm air around.

by elric 5y ago

jcynix 5y ago

There's no refrigerant here. Our heat pump uses plain water mixed with an anti-freezing agent. Just like the cooler in a car does. And there are control displays where you control all operating parameters. As for the "pump heat from here to there" ... while we are cooling we are warming the ground below. And as at our place, the ground's consistency keeps the warmth rather local, we reuse it later when we warm our water during the night. We do live in a densely populated area and about every fifth hoiuse built here during the last 10 years uses a ground-based heat pump. As for electricity use: each house has two hours of "blockage" where the pump is not allowed to run, so that the power lines aren't stressed. That's no problem at all, because all houses are highly insulated and thus buffer rather good.

bluGill 5y ago
There is refrigerant there. It is contained inside the system, and only your water mix leaves, but there is still refrigerant inside and it can leak.
- jcynix 5y ago
  That's correct. I was comparing our system to existing systems which directly use a refrigerant sent into the ground loop. Our heat pump itself is a closed system just as a refrigerator, and works indirectly via the water cycle used outside.

PeterisP 5y ago

The special thing about ground source heat pumps is, well, that they use ground instead of air - and it turns out to be a really important thing because of the temperature differences between ground and air. A/C or heat pump efficiency is directly related to the temperature difference over which you're trying to pump. If the temperature difference is twice as large, you need to spend twice as much energy to pump the same amount of heat. Furthermore, the days where you need a heat pump (or A/C) the most are the peak cold/heat days where the temperature difference between your house and the air is much larger than usual. Because of this, a ground source heat pump can do the same thing by spending much less power than an air source heat pump, so it is "greener" - though the installation is more cumbersome and expensive.

scotty79 5y ago
However there are air heat pumps which differ from the AC ran in reverse only in how the heat is distributed around the house. For example with warm water in the pipes not just blowing warm air around.