We work with geothermal in Davison, MI, and we’re big proponents of homeowners choosing to have a geothermal heat pump installed for their year-round home comfort. Geothermal heat pumps work on the same principle as standard air-source heat pumps, which is that they use the circulation of refrigerant to move heat from one place to another. In hot weather, the heat pump pushes heat out of the house. In cold weather, it reverses direction and pushes heat into the house.
The difference between air-source heat pumps and geothermal (or “ground-source”) heat pumps is the medium they use for heat transfer outside of the house. The air-source heat pump draws or releases heat into the air, and the geothermal system uses the ground at least six feet below the frost line.
Many homeowners are concerned about whether a geothermal heat pump will do the job they want from it during the winter. Do they need to have a back-up heater to help the system supply enough heat?
Even people who like winter more than any other season don’t like seeing utility bills start rising as the temperature begins dropping. It’s true you can’t avoid paying higher energy costs during the winter because of all the work your home’s central heating system must put in (and the water heater does more work as well). However, you can cut down on those costs with some basic steps.
The furnace is the most common type of central heating system, but in our area there are many homes that rely on boilers. Boilers are often found in homes that don’t have a network of ventilation ducts, since a boiler works by circulating hot water through pipes to terminal points (radiators, baseboard heaters) where the heat then radiates into the rooms.
You don’t need us to tell you how important a working furnace is in this part of the country. We deal with harsh winters, and they can sometimes stretch into April. A home’s furnace is essential for getting a family through even a single day of winter.
If you’ve heard an HVAC technician discussing making repairs to an air conditioner—possibly your air conditioner—you may have overheard terms you didn’t fully understand. For example, the evaporator coils. You might know evaporate coils have something to do with cooling the house, but not exactly what.
Well, you could ask politely … not all air conditioners are sensitive about their age!
The word geothermal contains the suffix -thermal. If you remember your Ancient Greek root words, or you’ve encountered thermal underwear at some point or know about “thermal detonators” from Star Wars, then you know thermal means heat. Geothermal power has something to do with heat—heat from the earth. (Putting those Greek roots to work again!) So when we tell you about options for geothermal air conditioning for your house, you might wonder if we’ve gone a touch batty. How can a geothermal system work to cool down a home?
It’s August, and some of the harshest hot days are going to strike during this month and the next. Air conditioning systems have already put in a great deal of work, and with more on the way, homeowners may start to ask the question: “Is my air conditioner going to wear down so much that it breaks?” Nobody wants the answer to be “yes.”
When the heat ramps up during the summer days, you may run into an air conditioner that can’t ramp up to meet it. It’s alarming when an AC isn’t sending out the cool air you need to feel comfortable, or if it isn’t sending out any air at all. In the rush to have your AC back to work as fast as possible, you may try to fix it yourself by opening up one of its cabinets and poking around inside with a DIY guide up on your smartphone. You might also call on a local guy with some tools in his van who says he can fix the air conditioning for you “real cheap.”
A warm summer day is a pleasant experience in Michigan. A warm, humid, summer day is much less pleasant. And a hot, humid day—that’s when people stay indoors and crank up their ACs.