Geothermal Cooling – General

• What is “Geothermal Cooling”?
  See section about geothermal cooling for an in-depth explanation.
  
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• How does Geothermal Cooling work?
  See section about ee sectee section about ion aboutee section about geothermal cooling for an in-depth explanation.
  
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• Is Geothermal Cooling more efficient than conventional air-conditioning?
  Yes. We achieve Energy Efficiency Rations in excess of 20. Most Indian manufacturers of conventional air-conditioning have an EER below 10. In fact, most Indian manufacturers of conventional air-conditioners will not even list the EER of their solutions. Ask any of the Indian manufacturers of air-conditioning what there EER is or look for this information on their web sites. When conventional air-conditioning manufacturers disclose their EER it is often under optimal conditions and NOT the harsh Indian summer.
  
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• What is the Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER)?
  This is the crucial number which tells you and us how efficient your air-conditioning solution is working. The higher the EER; the greater the efficiency. The greater the efficiency; the lower your energy bills.
  The EER ratings our cooling solutions have been ratified by independent 3rd parties such as the Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Institute (ARI) and the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). ASHRAE has an Indian chapter and is closely affiliated with ISHRAE, their Indian counterparts.
  
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• Does Geothermal Cooling work as well in the harsh Indian summer as during the cooler months?
  Yes. Geothermal Cooling maintains the same Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) in summer as it does in the cooler months. The performance of Geothermal Cooling is not affected by the outside ambient air temperature; conventional air-co0nditioning efficiencies drop considerably as the temperatures begin to rise.
  
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• Can Geothermal Cooling halve my electricity bill?
  Yes. Geothermal Cooling solutions have Energy Efficiency Ratios (EER) upwards of 20. Compare this to conventional air-conditioning solutions with EER’s less than 10. All our Indian installations to date have delivered on the promise of dramatically decreasing our customer’s energy bills when compared to a conventional air-conditioning unit.
  
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• Does Geothermal Cooling provide the lowest total cost of ownership of air-conditioning in India?
  Yes. India has some of the world’s most expensive and unreliable conventional electricity in the world today. By halving your energy consumption, we halve the cooling component of your electricity bill. Our Annual Maintenance Contract is comparable to any other conventional air-conditioning solution available in India. As such, we can truly claim to deliver the Lowest Total Cost of Ownership of air-conditioning in India today.
  
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• Is Geothermal Cooling better for the environment?
  Yes. Geothermal Cooling has about half the energy requirements compared to conventional air-conditioning solutions. By lowering the consumption of carbon-producing electricity we are better for the environment than conventional air-conditioning solutions. In fact, larger installations of Geothermal Cooling can qualify for Carbon Credits.
  
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• What incentives are available for installing Geothermal Cooling?
  Apart from reducing your cooling energy bill by 50%, there are a number of incentives available to those who install Geothermal Cooling provided by Governments and Non Government Organisations (NGO’s). Large installations can register for Carbon Credits through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the United Nation’s UNFCCC. Ask Geothermal India™ for more information, we will show you how. A number of local authorities provide rebates for renewable energy usage in India. Check with us to see if the local authority in your area provides rebates or other incentives. Geothermal India™ is currently lobbying various levels of government in India for rebates such as those offered by some authorities for solar hot water.
  
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• Can Geothermal Cooling generate Hot Water?
  Yes. By installing a Desuperheater together with the standard Geothermal Cooling Heat Pump, Geothermal Cooling can generate hot water without incurring additional energy. That means FREE hot water! The waste heat generated by the Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP) is used to heat water.
  
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• Does the installation of Geothermal Cooling result in a higher rating for a building?
  Yes. According to the guideline set by TERI-GRIHA, Geothermal Cooling contributes to higher building ratings via: Designing to include existing site features; Optimize the energy performance of the building within specified comfort limits; Renewable energy utilization; Renewable energy - based hot- water system; Lifecycle cost analysis.
  
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• Can Geothermal Cooling be retro-fitted to an existing building?
  Yes it can. Geothermal Cooling will utilise the existing ducting network of the building to distribute the cool air. To retro-fit, Geothermal India™ will need to build the ground loop system on your property.
  
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• Is Geothermal Cooling cheaper to operate?
  Yes, substantially. Generally, a Geothermal Cooling system will require 50% less power to operate. As such, your energy bills will be 50% less than that of a conventional air-conditioning system. Maintenance of the system is relatively care-free and low cost. We conduct quarterly site visits to change filerts and test the operational efficiency of the system. Take into account the FREE hot water generation and you have the Lowest Total Cost of OwnershipTM available in India today!
  
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• Does Geothermal India™ have the experience to deliver on the promise of providing the Lowest Cost of Ownership of cooling in India?
  Yes. Geothermal India™ has successfully installed Geothermal Cooling solutions in India with the Lowest Cost of Ownership of cooling. We have a Case Study outlining our success. Please contact us at info@geothermalindia.in for details.
  
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• What is a Ground Loop?
  The ground loop, also called an earth loop, is a series of pipes used to gather or dissipate heat. The pipes are High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and are highly efficient conductors of energy as well as durable and long-lasting. The earth absorbs almost 50% of all solar energy and remains a nearly constant temperature of 10°C (50°F) depending on geographic location. Working with an underground loop system, a geothermal unit utilizes this constant temperature to exchange energy between the building and the earth as needed for heating and cooling. In the summer, the system expels heat from buildings to the cooler earth via the loop system. This heat exchange process is natural and a highly efficient way to create a comfortable climate in buildings.
  
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• What are the types of Ground Loops?
  There are 2 types of loop systems; open and closed.
  An open ground loop system utilizes a water source such as a well to draw water into the system before depositing it.
  A closed ground loop system is a continuous circuit of water through the HDPE piping system. New water is not drawn as the system maintains a constant level.
  There are 2 major designs of the ground loop system; horizontal and vertical. Horizontal ground loop systems utilize a series of trenches generally 4 to 6 feet deep. The vertical ground loop system is a series of pipes in bore holes generally 300 feet or 90 metres deep. The bore holes can be deeper or shallower.
  
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• How wide is the bore hole?
  Typically the bore hole is about 6 inches (15 centimetres).
  
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• How wide are the pipes?
  HDPE pipes come in a variety of sizes. We generally use ¾”, 1” and 1 ¼” pipes depending upon the application.
  
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• Do we need permission can drill bore holes?
  Depends on the regulation of the local authority. As Geothermal India™ is not drawing water through the bore holes we drill, then we are not using the scarce water resource. Geothermal India™ has a former Government Scientist on our team who is able to communicate with your local authority if boring becomes an issue. Further, we encourage you to include our ground loop design with your developments plans as your submit them for approval.
  
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• What effect is on installation costs if a water table is struck during boring?
  There is no change in the cost structure.
  
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• What effect is on ground loop efficiency if the ground loop is submerged in a water table?
  The ground loop efficiency increases if it is submerged in an underground reservoir because water is an even better conductor of heating or cooling than soil.
  
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