Geothermal Heating

Would you like to know more about Geothermal Power? Those who live in area that don't happen to be graced by high temperature water that can be drilled out from vast underground pockets, and that's nearly everyone outside of the Rocky Mountain Areas in western North America, can still utilize geothermal power in their homes and businesses.

Geothermal power may include the transport of water that has been directly heated from the Earth. To those in the industry, cool includes water that's between 60-212F (18-100C) and nearly a quarter of North America is suitable for such use.

Higher temperature waters are more useful for industrial applications such as electricity generation, district heating, and food processing. However, these cooler waters are much better suited for use at pools and spas as well as agricultural uses such as aquaculture and plant propagation.

Even in areas without near-surface magma deposits, it is still possible to heat (or cool) water to the temperature of your average cave or, somewhere around 50F (10C). Water is circulated deep underground (or under lakes and ponds) within metal pipes, to pick up the heat of the Earth. Using this method, enough heat can be absorbed (and subsequently released) by the water to melt ice off sidewalks and markedly decrease reliance upon fossil fuel heat sources.

Unlike the ground itself, water is a very efficient conductor and storage media for heat. Because of this, systems that submerge the pipes directly in water require far less pipe and are actually far more efficient at transferring the heat. Systems that simply snake through the ground will require more (though often smaller diameter) pipe and larger pumps to push all that liquid around.

Deep ponds and lakes are ideally suited to cool water applications, though as such, these systems tend to be relegated to rural areas, unless residents around an urban lake are willing to share the lake's resource. They are very often found operating in the background at resorts, spas, rural homes and large, public buildings with water features on site.

If you are lucky enough to have a source of cool water for geothermal power nearby, whether held above or below room temperature, you can achieve significant power savings when heating and cooling your home or business with less capital investment than you may have imagined. Even those who don't live in geologically active areas can take advantage of the unique properties of liquid water in what is a simple and long-lasting power installation.

Geothermal Heating |