DIY geothermal setup... looking for advice!

weener · 08-09-12, 04:10 PM

Hello geothermal friends!

I have considered building a geothermal system at my parents farm which is located in the north west portion of Northumberland County in Ontario, Canada. We have one of the best water supplies in the county, but it is rather hard water. I have not tested it yet... all I know is it tastes great!

My current goal is to install a geothermal setup using the parts I have collected, and some I have yet to acquire. I am not sure if I want an open or closed loop. I will try and lay out what I have to work with. My budget is low to say the least.

The property is on a shelf, just above the lowest point in the valley and has 2 wells. One is dug, about 60 feet from the house on the right side when standing on the road looking at the property. The other is 300-350 or more feet away to the northeast and currently supplies the potable water for the house. There is an old in ground pool that is 20 feet away, directly behind the house. The pool has been gutted and in the deep end is nothing but the pea gravel that was below the liner.

There are several old barns on the the property. The largest is just in front of the potable well and it currently houses the wiring, holding tank, etc for the well. I am planning to dig a trench so I can bury a new PVC line from the well to the house because the old one is very old. This is a seperate project but it got me to thinking...

Which system was best for me? open loop? the well for intake is there and the exhaust is in place as well... (in the old pool)
Is closed loop the best? I could lay in coils of pipe on top of my water line install for 300-350 feet.

I have gathered the following stuff...
-loads of information, working on getting more and more.
-a friend with a backhoe so a trench is no problem.
-a vicarb stainless steel industrial heat exchanger

I am very interested in being pointed in the right direction. I plan to build my own heat pump with the help of a refrigeration buddy so I can keep it as cheap as possible. Thanks to AC_Hacker for the 'manifesto'! I'm about to read it again. If you need to know anything else, please ask! I'll respond as soon as I can.

Thanks,
Weener

weener · 08-09-12, 04:13 PM

empty post for pictures

weener · 08-09-12, 04:13 PM

waiting for pictures...

weener · 08-09-12, 04:15 PM

weener · 08-09-12, 04:23 PM

AC_Hacker · 08-13-12, 03:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by weener

...I am very interested in being pointed in the right direction. I plan to build my own heat pump with the help of a refrigeration buddy so I can keep it as cheap as possible. Thanks to AC_Hacker for the 'manifesto'! I'm about to read it again. If you need to know anything else, please ask...

Don't start by thinking about the heating system, instead, start by thinking of ways to keep the heat from leaking out. Thats where your money is best spent.

Do a careful analysis to see if your house is leaking out heat in the winter. If you have infiltration leaks, you should do whatever you need to do to stop those leaks.

Next, look to insulation... that's your next best bang-for-the-dollar.

The better job you can do at keeping the heat in means the less money & effort you will need to spend later on, constructing a heating system.

Next, after you have completed the heat-loss efforts, is to calculate what your heating load is...

You can calculate heating load, using what's called a Manual-J method, or you can figure how much fuel you burned, and calculate what the heat value was of all that fuel. Of particular interest is how much fuel was burned on the coldest days.

Then you start looking at a geothermal system...

Open loop will be the easiest & cheapest to do. If you use open loop, you'll need to know what your reliable volume is during the season that you intend to exploit energy. Once you know the volume, you can start to calculate if open source is even a possible alternative.

Next easiest is to use the pond. Is is it large enough and deep enough to do the job?

Last would be a closed loop geothermal. the amount of borehole or amount and depth of trench is very much dependent on your locale, soil conditions and heat load.

Best,

-AC_Hacker

08-09-12, 04:10 PM	#1
weener Lurking Renovator Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Central Ontario, Canada Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	DIY geothermal setup... looking for advice! Hello geothermal friends! I have considered building a geothermal system at my parents farm which is located in the north west portion of Northumberland County in Ontario, Canada. We have one of the best water supplies in the county, but it is rather hard water. I have not tested it yet... all I know is it tastes great! My current goal is to install a geothermal setup using the parts I have collected, and some I have yet to acquire. I am not sure if I want an open or closed loop. I will try and lay out what I have to work with. My budget is low to say the least. The property is on a shelf, just above the lowest point in the valley and has 2 wells. One is dug, about 60 feet from the house on the right side when standing on the road looking at the property. The other is 300-350 or more feet away to the northeast and currently supplies the potable water for the house. There is an old in ground pool that is 20 feet away, directly behind the house. The pool has been gutted and in the deep end is nothing but the pea gravel that was below the liner. There are several old barns on the the property. The largest is just in front of the potable well and it currently houses the wiring, holding tank, etc for the well. I am planning to dig a trench so I can bury a new PVC line from the well to the house because the old one is very old. This is a seperate project but it got me to thinking... Which system was best for me? open loop? the well for intake is there and the exhaust is in place as well... (in the old pool) Is closed loop the best? I could lay in coils of pipe on top of my water line install for 300-350 feet. I have gathered the following stuff... -loads of information, working on getting more and more. -a friend with a backhoe so a trench is no problem. -a vicarb stainless steel industrial heat exchanger I am very interested in being pointed in the right direction. I plan to build my own heat pump with the help of a refrigeration buddy so I can keep it as cheap as possible. Thanks to AC_Hacker for the 'manifesto'! I'm about to read it again. If you need to know anything else, please ask! I'll respond as soon as I can. Thanks, Weener

08-09-12, 04:13 PM	#2
weener Lurking Renovator Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Central Ontario, Canada Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	empty post for pictures

08-09-12, 04:15 PM	#4
weener Lurking Renovator Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Central Ontario, Canada Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts

08-09-12, 04:23 PM	#5
weener Lurking Renovator Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Central Ontario, Canada Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts