The Earth-Coupled or Geothermal Heat Pump Air Conditioning System

Abstract

As utility costs have risen despite political campaign promises and energy conserving measures implemented by the utility companies such as alternative fuel use (coal and nuclear), co-generation, etc., homeowners have begun to search for effective methods of reducing their electricity bills. In some cases homeowners are faced with utility bills That are approaching the cost of their mortgage payments. For those with fixed incomes, such as the elderly or those looking forward to retirement in the near future, this has become an alarming reality. Virtually every homeowner would like to reduce his utility bill but the question is, what items should he address in order to have a significant impact on his electricity costs? According to Houston Lighting h Power Company, 50% of an electricity bill can be attributed to the air conditioning system, and another 15-20% to the hot water heating system. Therefore, to dramatically reduce utility costs one should look first at these two "energy gulpers" and next at proper home insulation, window coverings, etc. The other electrical appliances in the home use relatively minor amounts of electricity compared to the air conditioning and hot water heating system. This paper will describe the geothermal heat pump and the desuperheater as the latest developments in energy efficient air conditioning and water heating.