By Chris Tomkins

The last few decades has seen a rapid growth in awareness of the environmental problems associated with burning fossil fuels to produce energy. The spread of alternative energy use has not been anywhere near as rapid. Many people have been prevented from switching to environmentally sound options by poor availability, insufficient efficiency and high prices of renewable energy systems.

It has been particularly difficult for people to turn to environmentally friendly energy production in their own homes. They do not have the resources, in terms of either funding or space, necessary to build a wind farm of put up ranks of solar panels. They have instead been offered small solar panels, solar water heaters and small wind turbines. These can rarely provide enough power for the entire home, and they tend to be too expensive for the average family. Ecofriendly electricity companies are beginning to remedy the situation by providing clean energy, but generating power on a small scale is still difficult.

Solar water heaters may be the exception. They use the sun’s heat directly, to warm water for use in the home. They are affordable and work well, particularly during the summer. Solar heaters can provide hot water and heat the home.

Clean methods of energy production for domestic heating are an important part of the UK’s efforts to become more environmentally friendly. About 40% of carbon dioxide emissions are produced by the heating of buildings.

An alternative method of heating the home that is more efficient and reliable than solar water heaters is now spreading through the UK. This technology has been available for about 50 years, but until recently, it has not made much of an impression in this country. Geothermal or ground source heating takes heat energy from the ground and distributes it through the house. It can also heat water for domestic use, and cool the home during hot weather. It can be relied on throughout the year, requires little maintenance and is not impossibly expensive.

These systems redistribute heat through a series of pipes running underground and through the house. The temperature underground remains much more constant than that above ground. This means that it is warmer underground in winter and cooler in summer. A geothermal system takes advantage of this fact by redistributing heat energy from the ground into the house.

The energy comes from underground pipes that are buried near the house, vertically or horizontally. A liquid runs though these pipes. It is pumped down into the ground then back up into the house, where it passes through a heat exchanger. The liquid then continues around into the ground again. As it passes around this loop, its temperature changes. It grows warmer when it moves underground, absorbing heat from the warm earth surrounding the pipe. In the heat exchanger, it loses this heat to a cooler liquid that is being pumped around a separate loop.

This second liquid, in its separate loop, is turned into gas as it absorbs heat. The gas passes into a compressor, which pushes the molecules of gas closer together, raising their temperature even further. The ground heat raised it to about 12 degrees Celsius. Compression increases it to over 65 degrees Celsius.

The hot gas is used to heat water and/or air. The water which it has heated can be used in the home, just like hot water produced by any other method. It can also be used in the heating system (e.g. radiators). The heated air is pumped through a system of ducts to warm the house, while a second duct system brings cooler air back to the heat exchanger.

During the summer, when the house is hot and the ground cool, the heat exchange can be reversed to cool the house.

Geothermal systems use pumps that run on electricity, so while this power source is still based on fossil fuels they are not entirely environmentally friendly. The systems are very efficient, however, producing three to four kilowatts of heat for every kilowatt of electricity used. This means that they reduce the use of other types of energy. If a renewable electricity source is also used, then the system becomes completely clean.

Geothermal heating systems are efficient and reliable. They can heat water and maintain a steady temperature in the home, heating it in winter and cooling it in summer. They can work with traditional home heating systems such as radiators and underfloor heating. A geothermal system can reduce energy bills by 70%. The initial cost will be high, but it can be reduced by government grants, available under the Clear Skies scheme.

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