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With soaring energy costs it is time to look seriously at alternative methods of heating and cooling. Clarke Consumer Services installs all kinds of air conditioners and furnaces, from propane and natural gas to electric.

However, the most efficient furnace/air conditioner on the market today is the geothermal heat pump, which serves as both furnace and air in one unit.

Geothermal (GeoExchange) systems are electrically powered systems that take advantage of the earth's relatively constant ground temperature to provide heating, cooling, and hot water for homes and commercial buildings. Rather than creating heat like conventional fossil fuel systems, GeoExchange systems move heat that already exists. They consist of three elements: the ground heat exchanger, the heat pump unit, and the air delivery system (duct work). The same loop works for both heating & cooling.

In the winter, the ground heat exchanger transfers heat from the ground and carries it through the system and into the indoor air delivery system. In the summer, the system reverses itself to cool the building by pulling heat from the building and depositing it in the ground.

Ground heat exchangers for GeoExchange systems consist of a grid of buried polyethylene plastic pipe (ground loops) through which a liquid heat exchange medium (water or antifreeze) circulates. This circulating fluid is the mechanism by which heat is absorbed from the earth to be transferred into the building, or from the building into the ground. This process creates free hot water in the summer, and delivers substantial hot water savings in the winter.

There are four main kinds of ground loop systems to choose from: Horizontal, vertical, pond/lake, or open. The one you install will depend on your specific needs, climate and soil conditions, available land area, and the local installation costs. The same loop works for both heating and cooling.

As a result of using this type of system, the consumer can save as much as 60% over any other unit on the market in the winter, and up to 40% in the summer. Add to that savings the environmental friendliness of the system and it is easy to see why this is such a good alternative to the old methods we have grown up with and are so accustomed to.

Clarke Electric is an expert at sizing heat pumps for the needs of your home or business, and equally adept at installing them. The heat pump is long lasting and reliable and even with the extra costs of putting them in initially, they pay for themselves in 7 to 10 years depending on the size of the unit and efficiency of the windows and insulation.

Kevin Foley is our specialist in the HVAC Department, and you are welcome to contact him from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday at (641) 342-2173 or 800-362-2154.