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Off-The-Charts Efficiency: The Case For A Ground-Source Heat Pump

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Running a furnace to keep your home warm through the cold of winter adds up—in fact, it can be your most costly appliance. While installing a ground-source heat pump comes with a high initial cost, you will save money and keep your costs low by the unmatched efficiency of a ground-source heat pump. 

How a Heat Pump Works

A heat pump will use a set of evaporator coils to cool the air flowing into your home in order to cool your home through the summer. During the winter, all you have to do is reverse the flow of coolant through your system to use your system to heat your home. The heat pump will then absorb heat from the outside air and then use the coils inside your home to vent the heat into your home. Thus, you can both heat and cool your home with one system. 

The Difference between an Air-Source and a Ground-Source Heat Pump

You can buy an air-source heat pump for your home, which will look and function much like an air conditioner. The problem with pulling heat from the air to cool your home during the winter is that the cooler the outside air is, the harder your system has to work to heat your home. During the summer, your system has to work hard to push heat into the already hot outside air. Instead of having coils exposed to the fluctuations of air temperatures, a ground-source heat pump will have a set of coils buried in the ground outside of your home. 

The Advantages of a Ground-Source Heat Pump

Ground temperatures are much more moderate and consistent than air temperatures; in fact, the temperature ten feet below the ground will stay between 50-60 degrees year round. Tapping into these temperatures will help your heat pump to achieve efficiency ratings of up to 600%, which is double what you would get with an air-source heat pump. With that kind of efficiency, you can put a serious dent in your heating and cooling costs. 

Because of the need to bury coils underground, ground-source heat pumps come with high installation costs. Talk with an HVAC service, like Coral Home Comfort, a traditional heating and cooling system is best for your family. If, however, you can handle the high initial cost, you can vastly reduce your HVAC costs and free up a lot of money in your budget. 

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