Below the surface

Reduce your carbon footprint and save money with a geothermal system.

By Nikki Yeh

Bugging your man to get your home repairs done? en add geothermal heating and cooling
to his check list. So what is it? “It’s basically a refrigerator system,” says Ted Kantrowitz,
vice president of the Quebec-based Canadian GeoExchange Coalition (CGC), Canada’s industry association for geothermal heat pump technology. However, this isn’t just any fridge. A geothermal system keeps your home cool or warm with an underground horizontal or vertical loop and a ground-source heat pump. ink of it this way: in the wintertime, you’re
getting your heat from the ground. In the summertime, “the system brings heat from the
house into the ground, [consequently] switching cycles,” explains Kantrowitz. A geothermal
system never creates heat — it just uses existing heat from the earth. It’s also pretty easy for
you to control; just fl ick a switch on your indoor thermostat to change modes.

Green explanation
So why extract heat from the earth? Because 47 percent of the sun’s energy gets absorbed
and stored into the ground. Without emitting greenhouse gases, a geothermal system helps lower your home’s carbon footprint. For example, a geothermal system in a 2,500-squarefoot home saves the electric utility company eight tonnes of coal a year. Although it costs the average suburban home $20,000 to $40,000 to install a geothermal system, it’s worth it. In fact, you could reduce heating bills by 50-to-70 percent annually, says Paul Vaillancourt of ECCO Heating Products Ltd.’s corporate business development, geothermal division in Langley, British Columbia. Plus, a $3,500 rebate from the federal government’s ecoENERGY Retrofi t Homes Program is available for those who install CGCaccredited geothermal heating pumps. On top of that, you can contact Natural Resources Canada to find out how much your province will help you out with your geothermal fees. For example, Hydro-Québec has grants starting from $2,000.

Shopping matters
Ready for the plunge? Then Kantrowitz says to make sure that your contractors are
knowledgeable about geothermal installations. To qualify for your government rebates (and
ensure that your backyard doesn’t become a digging nightmare), your contractor should be
CGC-certifi ed. Vaillancourt also recommends asking your contractor for
his references to verify past installations.