Geothermal

Geothermal energy has tremendous potential as a passive or active type of renewable energy that can be used to heat and cool your home, depending upon the geothermal design you use.

Because it is not well known among the general public and largely under-utilized, many people wonder, just what is geothermal energy exactly? Generally, geothermal heating and cooling is achieved by using the steady temperature of the Earth, even in very cold climates, to conduct a steady 50F or so into your home or water. In areas with hot springs or a steady supply of heated steam just under the surface, geo thermal may be used for active heating or even spinning turbines to make geothermal energy.

Many geothermal power plants drill directly into rock to reach superheated water that can reach temperatures of up to 700F. This water is then pumped up to make turbine-spinning steam. When spent, the water is sent back down so it may be heated up again by nearby magma.

One of the disadvantages of using active geothermal energy is reliance upon being in a geologically active region to take advantage of it. However, even those who live in very geo thermally stable areas can take advantage of heat exchangers to bring their home up to an almost comfortable level that can be very easily heated with a minimum of supplemental heating.

Such direct exchange geothermal systems are the most common type of installed in most areas, such as the Great Plains and the Eastern half of North America whereas much of the West has the potential to support active dry or wet steam output. Most of the systems in the American West are found in California, Oregon and British Columbia.

Those lucky enough to live in an area with high geothermal heat capacity can take advantage of direct heat transfer through hot water pipes or from the energy produced, either at the home or business site or, more likely, at a power plant. Unless you have a geyser or hot spring on your property, it is unlikely you’ll be digging through solid rock to get your own pocket of trapped steam.

A quick study of geothermal energy in history shows this technology has been used for a very long time, but mostly in areas where the springs actually came to the surface. The Romans (the first Italian geothermal pioneers) built their provincial bathhouses upon sites that supported natural geothermal heating systems. Since then, several European countries have invested heavily in geothermal heating. France and Italy have taken advantage of geothermal power perhaps more than any other nation with the exception of Iceland.