The energy savings you’re looking for may be right at your feet, or rather, below your feet.
A Geothermal Heat Pump (GHP) is the most fuel efficient form of heat pump, and it works just fine in Michigan winters. Where an air-source heat pump loses effectiveness in heating mode when outside temperatures dips to below 40 degrees, a geothermal heat pump draws heat from below ground where soil temperature in Michigan remains a constant 47-50° F, even during the coldest January nights. The below ground heat exchange can reach an efficiency of 300 to 600 percent, compared to 175 to 250 percent efficiency of air-source heat pumps.
And come July when temperatures can reach well into the 90s and sometimes break 100°, the temperature below ground is still 47-50°. Rather than draw heat the Earth during the summer, it uses the ground as a heat sink, keeping your home plenty cool. Instead of the copper coils typically in air-sourced heat pumps, geothermal heat pumps use plastic tubing buried at least four to six feet below ground. An antifreeze solution is pumped through the pipes in a closed loop to a heat exchanger that transfers heat between the system’s refrigerant and the antifreeze.
Kidder offers Bryant’s innovated geothermal heating and cooling systems that maintain very high efficiencies whatever the temperature is outside. Bryant’s GT and GP models provide the ultimate in comfort and quiet operation with two-stage compressor operation and variable-speed blower to help manage your utility costs even further. As with Bryant’s furnaces and air conditioners, Bryant also has a line of Legacy geothermal heat pumps to reduce upfront costs.