All about Geothermal Energy

Free Workshop

Date: Thu, August 9th
Time: 6:30pm
Location: Vintage 50, Leesburg
50 Catoctin Cir. NE #100

John Panko will be presenting about Geothermal Energy. He is the head of Ancon Mechanical which is a company that does HVAC and geothermal. They have been installing for many years, he even pioneered a new drilling technique to minimize lawn area required. He will explain how you could throw away a brand new A/C unit, replace it with geothermal and still come out ahead.

Come out, learn about geothermal energy!

See you there!

 

I don't think these systems are allowed in Broadlands.

 

Why not? Aren't they underground, therefore nothing for the HOA to disagree with? Why would this be disallowed?

 

I would suggest that if a homeowner is seriously gets interested in installing this type of system, then it will be a matter of finding out from the HOA office if it is or not allowed, if not they would submit a permission to try to satisfy any concerns of the HOA by working with the contractor who will be doing this.

These types of technologies are changing all the time and we should not assume that once something is not allowed it can not be re-considered or changed.

So, anyone interested in this should come and find out about it's benefits and savings opportunity.

 

Benefits of Geothermal Heat Pump Systems

The biggest benefit of GHPs is that they use 25%–50% less electricity than conventional heating or cooling systems. This translates into a GHP using one unit of electricity to move three units of heat from the earth. According to the EPA, geothermal heat pumps can reduce energy consumption—and corresponding emissions—up to 44% compared to air-source heat pumps and up to 72% compared to electric resistance heating with standard air-conditioning equipment. GHPs also improve humidity control by maintaining about 50% relative indoor humidity, making GHPs very effective in humid areas.

Geothermal heat pump systems allow for design flexibility and can be installed in both new and retrofit situations. Because the hardware requires less space than that needed by conventional HVAC systems, the equipment rooms can be greatly scaled down in size, freeing space for productive use. GHP systems also provide excellent "zone" space conditioning, allowing different parts of your home to be heated or cooled to different temperatures.

Because GHP systems have relatively few moving parts, and because those parts are sheltered inside a building, they are durable and highly reliable. The underground piping often carries warranties of 25–50 years, and the heat pumps often last 20 years or more. Since they usually have no outdoor compressors, GHPs are not susceptible to vandalism. On the other hand, the components in the living space are easily accessible, which increases the convenience factor and helps ensure that the upkeep is done on a timely basis.

Because they have no outside condensing units like air conditioners, there's no concern about noise outside the home. A two-speed GHP system is so quiet inside a house that users do not know it is operating: there are no tell-tale blasts of cold or hot air.

 

I may have been mistaken. My aging memory recalled a prohibition to these, but I just went through all my Broadlands documents and couldn't find anything.