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| | GEOTHERMAL
| | | What is Geothermal Energy?
Our Earth’s interior – like the sun – provides heat energy from nature. This heat – geothermal energy – yields warmth and power that we can use without polluting the environment.
Alternative “geothermal energy systems” are available. This heat can be used to heat water for your home, or to simply warm your house.
Water is usually pumped through one end of a lengthy piping system, and by the time it reaches the other end the water is of a significantly higher temperature than it was at the start.
The great advantage to geothermal ground source heat pumps is they can be used in many locations. Even snowy regions such as Norway and Sweden see efficient results when using ground source heat pumps.
A geothermal heat pump can be very efficient in providing your home with a source of low cost hot water. The use of a ground source heat pump with a backup boiler allows your boiler to use less energy to heat the water than it would have previously. This can save you significant amounts of money on energy bills for your home or business.
Geothermal Heat Pumps
Today, with geothermal heat pumps (GHP’s), we take advantage of this stable earth temperature – about 45 – 58 degrees F just a few feet below the surface – to help keep our indoor temperatures comfortable. GHP’s circulate water or other liquids through pipes buried in a continuous loop (either horizontally or vertically) next to a building. Depending on the weather, the system is used for heating or cooling.
Heating: Earth’s heat (the difference between the earth’s temperature and the colder temperature of the air) is transferred through the buried pipes into the circulating liquid and then transferred again into the building.
Cooling: During hot weather, the continually circulating fluid in the pipes ‘picks up’ heat from the building – thus helping to cool it – and transfers it into the earth.
GHP’s use very little electricity and are very easy on the environment.
In the U.S., the temperature inside over 300,000 homes, schools and offices is kept comfortable by these energy saving systems, and hundreds of thousands more are used worldwide. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has rated GHP’s as among the most efficient of heating and cooling technologies. Geothermal Heat Pumps Eligible for Tax Credit of 30%
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, H.R.1 (Stimulus Bill of 2009) that was signed by the President on February 17, 2009, contains long-term tax incentives to encourage the installation of geothermal heat pumps in residences. The new law, effective Januray 1, 2009, offers a one-time tax credit of 30% of the total investment for geothermal heat pump installations-without the limit of $2,000 that was part of the law enacted in 2008. It should be understood that a tax credit is generally more valuable than a tax deduction of the same magnitude because a tax credit reduces the tax obligation directly, while a deduction only reduces taxable income. Therefore the reduction in tax is only a fraction of the deduction. While it's expected to take many months for the IRS to release the updated forms and instructions for filing to claim this credit, it is expected that the credit will be treated as a refundable credit, so they not only directly reduce the amount of tax payable, they could bring a taxpayer's tax obligation into the negative. A tax credit of 10% of the total investment is also available without a maximum credit limit for commercial installations.
To learn more on Geothermal visit: Earthlinked.com |
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