As energy costs rise and environmental concerns gain prominence, homeowners increasingly seek sustainable and cost-effective solutions for their heating and cooling needs. One such solution that has garnered attention is geothermal heating and cooling. Utilizing the Earth’s stable underground temperatures, geothermal systems offer numerous benefits, making them an attractive option for American homeowners.

Energy Efficiency and Cost Savings

Geothermal heating and cooling systems are incredibly energy-efficient. Unlike traditional HVAC systems that burn fossil fuels, geothermal systems transfer heat to and from the ground using a series of buried pipes called a ground loop. This process requires significantly less energy, resulting in lower utility bills. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, geothermal systems can reduce energy consumption by up to 50% compared to conventional systems. Over time, these savings can offset the initial installation costs, making geothermal a financially sound investment.

Environmental Benefits

One of the most compelling reasons to consider geothermal heating and cooling is its positive environmental impact. Geothermal systems produce zero carbon emissions on-site, reducing the homeowner’s carbon footprint. By using renewable energy from the Earth, these systems help to decrease reliance on fossil fuels and mitigate climate change. Additionally, geothermal systems do not require burning fuel, eliminating the risk of harmful emissions and improving indoor air quality.

Durability and Longevity

Geothermal systems are known for their durability and long lifespan. The underground components, such as the ground loop, can last over 50 years. In comparison, the indoor components typically have a lifespan of 20 to 25 years. This longevity reduces the need for frequent replacements and maintenance, providing homeowners with a reliable and hassle-free heating and cooling solution. In contrast, traditional HVAC systems often require more frequent repairs and replacements, adding to the overall cost and inconvenience.

Consistent Comfort

One of the standout benefits of geothermal heating and cooling is its consistent comfort. Unlike traditional systems that struggle to maintain even temperatures, geothermal systems offer precise temperature control. The stable underground temperatures ensure that the system operates efficiently year-round, providing consistent heating in the winter and cooling in the summer. Homeowners can enjoy a comfortable indoor environment without the fluctuations often associated with other heating and cooling methods.

Quiet Operation

Geothermal systems operate quietly, contributing to a peaceful home environment. The noisy outdoor units commonly found with traditional air conditioning systems are eliminated as the geothermal heat pump is installed indoors. This quiet operation is particularly beneficial for homes in noise-sensitive areas or for homeowners who value tranquility.

Increased Property Value

Investing in a geothermal heating and cooling system can also enhance a home’s value. As energy efficiency and sustainability become more important to homebuyers, properties equipped with geothermal systems will likely be more attractive. The promise of lower utility bills, reduced environmental impact, and long-term savings can make a home with geothermal heating and cooling a more appealing option in the real estate market.

Geothermal heating and cooling systems offer a multitude of benefits for American homeowners. These systems represent a wise and forward-thinking choice, from significant cost savings and energy efficiency to environmental sustainability and enhanced comfort. While the initial installation costs may be higher, the long-term advantages and potential increase in property value make geothermal heating and cooling a worthwhile investment. As more homeowners seek sustainable solutions, geothermal systems are poised to play a key role in the future of residential heating and cooling.

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Three years in the making: Oregon über-green superhome breaks all the traditional rules of high-efficiency homebuilding. Any way you look at it, it’s over the top, energy-wise. When David Maul of Maul Energy Advisors, in Bend, Ore., decided to build his new home, he was determined to have something unique and uniquely green. What he ended up with is a home fi t for entry as a project in the Solar Decathlon.

The certified LEED Platinum house was completed in June of 2009. Combining a ground source heat pump for cooling, heating, and domestic hot water assist along with solar photovoltaic and domestic solar hot water technologies, the home pushes the energy efficiency envelope beyond what’s generally considered feasible for a house its size.

“The 4,000 to 6,000 sq. ft. range is considered the ‘SUV’ of the housing market,” explained Maul, “Otherwise known as energy hogs. I wanted to show everyone that there is such a thing as a truly
green SUV.” Maul’s home, one of six LEED Platinum Homes in Bend, is 4,316 sq. ft. of lush green living space.

“I wanted the classic Pacific Northwestern feel, and my wife, Beverley, prefers an Asian design theme,” said Maul. Both styles intermingle easily, inside and out. The Mauls have owned the property that supports the home for about 16 years. “From the beginning, we planned to build a sustainable and energy-efficient home. We didn’t really get close to the design we settled on until shortly before construction began,” said Maul.

Beverley’s uncle, Earl Seaman, an architect out of Tacoma, Wash., drew up the original plan, blending the two design themes. Chad Phillips of Bend created the final plan, with additional style features. The Mauls were very closely involved with all facets of the design process, which took two years to complete.

The Mauls didn’t have to look far to find a contractor to match the quality they were seeking. For this high-efficiency project they chose SolAire Homebuilders, an award-winning firm based in Bend that specializes in building green homes, their sole focus since 1995.

Tapping Geothermal Energy

“Building the Maul’s home was a learning experience,” said Cindi O’Neil, co-owner of SolAire. “It combined everything we knew about green building, with the energy-efficient
systems Maul wanted.”

Maul’s geothermal system was the first one that SolAire had incorporated into a residential project. Although geothermal installations are now commonplace across the Midwest and the eastern part of the country, some of the Western states have been slow to adopt the technology.

The home’s ground-source, water-to-air geothermal system consists of five vertical, four-inch boreholes at 200 ft. deep, each fully grouted. According to Darryl Knabe, service manager at Mountain View Heating in Bend, it was the first vertical installation in Central Oregon. Mountain View installed the Maul’s ClimateMaster system.

An additional 100 ft. of horizontal trench also serves as part of the system’s geo-exchange. The six, independent closed loops provide year-round thermal exchange for the five-ton ClimateMaster Tranquility 27® water-to-air system. HVAC delivery in the home is divided into six zones for maximum comfort and efficiency. Maul’s geothermal system has a two-stage scroll compressor and a variable-speed air handler.

Two different ventilation systems can be found in the home. The night-time ventilation system, installed by Mountain View Heating, is a whole-house fl ush filtering system. It operates based on indoor and outdoor temperature differentials, and has an entirely separate, balanced duct system. The second system is an ERV.

Solar With Geo. Why Not?

Fortunately, the town of Bend is smack dab in the middle of Oregon’s high desert region, a huge advantage to the Mauls because of its extreme suitability for solar collectors. The climate provides nine months of steady sunshine. For a solar application, the other three months are patchy, yet still productive.

The Maul’s solar array consists of 12 flat panels mounted on the roof. Ten of the panels are photovoltaic, providing a combined capacity of 2.25 KW to the home. The remaining two solar thermal panels account for most of the home’s domestic hot water needs. In winter, the collectors still provide hot water, though not as efficiently. Hot water is stored in an insulated, 120-gallon solar storage tank installed upstream of the 80-gallon. electric water heater. The geothermal system also incorporates a desuperheater to provide additional heat for domestic water during the summer months. The device is an auxiliary heat-recovery system that provides up to 60 percent of a home’s domestic hot water. In essence, it’s a second condenser located in the cabinet and connected to a standard electric water heater via a coaxial fitting. It delivers more heat in summer, but it helps in winter, too. A desuperheater is well worth the cost; without it, the Maul’s would need a large geo-exchange field underground to dissipate the extra heat.

Pushing the Envelope

To achieve LEED greatness, the Maul’s home needed an ultra-efficient building envelope. SolAire used an 8” thick, staggered stud wall system with blown-in-blanket (BIB) insulation for all exterior walls. The staggered design removes the gaps in the insulation usually caused by wall studs, eliminating thermal bridging and the subtle wicking-away of thermal energy all year long. The walls have an R-38 insulation value. The subfloor is also BIB and the ceilings are blown, both insulated for amazing R-values of 38 and 49 respectively.

“We spent an entire day going over the building envelope to seal every penetration and crack,” said Maul. The resulting blower door test was 3.3 ACH at 50 Pascals, which is half the standard set by the state of Oregon. The double-glazed, low-e windows have foam thermal spacers in place of metal, helping to squeeze down the size of the home’s carbon footprint even further. All of the large, West-facing windows in the house have powered, exterior solar shade screens that block 95% of the incoming summer heat. There is an outdoor solar sensor that triggers the shade operation, lowering them whenever the sun strikes that wall, reducing heat gain. The shades can easily be switched to winter operation so that they stay up during the day to embrace the sun’s energy.

At night, the shades drop to further insulate the window and reduce heat loss. The geothermal and solar systems combined with an extremely well insulated envelope made for astonishing energy savings, especially considering the size of the home. “My utility bill for January was $135 for electric, and $19 for gas. In February, my electric bill dropped to $95,” said Maul. “Last summer, my August electric bill was $39 and my gas bill was $4, and the house stayed a cool 68-72 degrees.”

Water Conservation

Because the master bathroom is located a good distance from the hot water tanks, it would take nearly two minutes to reach the shower, wasting lots of water. To remedy the problem, Maul decided to install a small tankless water heater in a bathroom cabinet to supply the shower until water from the solar tanks reaches the bathroom. The water heater’s intake supply comes from the hot water tank, so that when hot water reaches the unit, its heating element is turned off. For the remainder of the shower, only hot water from the solar and geothermally heated tanks is used.

To continue the water-saving trend, the bathrooms are all outfitted with dual-fl ush toilets and low-fl ow fixtures. A 1,600-gallon cistern was buried below the backyard garden to store filtered rainwater from the gutters.

“I use rainwater for the landscaping outside,” explained Maul, “although the plants we used are mostly native, drought resistant species that rarely need watering.”

An All-Renewable Approach

Wherever possible, the Mauls used local building materials. The blown fiberglass insulation contains recycled glass and is manufactured within 500 miles of Bend. Nearly a third of the aggregate in the foundation’s concrete is recycled fly ash; the concrete and aggregate is locally manufactured. All the flooring in the home comes from renewable sources. The majority of the house has bamboo flooring, carrying on the Asian motif. The bedrooms have wool carpeting and the remainder of the house is tiled.

IAQ, Important Too

Just inside the large, custom-made front doors, there is a small water feature with a black granite waterfall. Beyond aesthetic beauty, the pool adds humidity to the house with misters. The hidden mister line pressurizes with house-supplied water through an automatic valve and timer. In such an arid region, the humidifier keeps the air inside the home more comfortable, as well as playing a part in keeping all the wood and bamboo in the house in great condition.

When the Mauls were younger, green and energy-efficient buildings often meant ugly designs and limited conveniences. The home that SolAire just built for the Mauls proves that green can be beautiful, comfortable, and provide a lifetime of energy savings.

Original Article Source: ClimateMaster Case Study
Download the Case Study PDF

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Outdoor enthusiasts will go to great extremes to set up camp. An example of just how far they’ll go is the “re-greening” of a rural log home near 28 mile-long Raystown Lake in central Pennsylvania.

In the fall of 2007, Travis and Rachel Wenger spent months looking for a family retreat and hunting lodge. During a second visit to one of the properties – a 2,400 s.f., three bedroom log home built in 1994 – they were on the home’s wrap-around deck when suddenly the realtor clammed-up and turned pale. A 400-pound black bear, ignoring them, climbed the opposite stair to assault the gas grill.

Convinced that it was “the sign we were looking for, we immediately agreed to buy the place,” said Travis Wenger.

The home is nestled into a mountainside with property that borders thousands of acres of state game lands where deer, turkey and bear roam freely. Nearby, the great outdoors – several state parks, the Juniata River and miles of wildlife trails – beckoned.

Green Mechanical Makeover

Travis Wenger and his father Merv run a cabinetry business, and this wasn’t their fi rst remodel project. Their experience includes several home renovations, so they quickly set out to remodel the log house, adding more bedrooms and “truck loads of insulation.” Plans called for extensive HVAC upgrades with geothermal-to-radiant heat and a large log garage with living quarters above for guests, all radiantly heated.

Contractor columnist and president of York, PA-based F. W. Behler, Inc., Dave Yates, says that phase 1 of the project is done, and phase 2 will run its course with the integration of solar-thermal and PV arrays in the fall. Chosen to manage the mechanical makeover, Yates said he and his top mechanics learned a thing or two while assembling the pieces. During a period of several months, the energy-in-the-red log house metamorphosed into an unusually energy efficient base camp for outdoor enthusiasts – complete with all the comforts of home.

“Before the remodel, the place left a Sasquatch-sized carbon footprint,” said Yates. “The log home leaked like a sieve. Winters are brutal up there, so they were burning LP gas furiously and watched the electric meter spin like an old 78 Victrola.”

Yates visited the Wengers in the fall of 2007 to do the heat load calculation and to make notes about the upcoming job. “For the homeowners, achieving energy efficiency was just as important as having year-round comfort,” added Yates.

“Previously, the home had electric a/c and a 140 MBH LP-gas furnace with supplemental heat from one fi replace and three old potbelly wood stoves,” said Yates. “They also used several electric heaters and an old electric water heater.”

The Wengers gave Yates flexibility in designing a “green” system, adding that if it made sense to keep some of the old equipment, fine; but where it made better sense to toss out the old to make room for the new was even better.

Before long, materials and equipment were being trucked up the narrow mountain road to the job site. Local water well and geothermal driller Dave Eriksen brought in his equipment with instructions to drill three bore holes into which geothermal lines were inserted; holes were then thermally grouted.

The Wengers settled on a unique mechanical system designed by Yates, at the heart of which – for the heating season – would be a high-temp, “THW” water-to-water geothermal system by ClimateMaster, two twin-coil indirect water heaters, and several preassembled, preengineered hydronic panels – one of which was built to introduce solar heat for domestic water, then to share additional heat with the radiant system. By the time the F. W. Behler crew began their work at the home, 100 miles from the shop, the Wengers had already re-sealed all the log, began the basement remodel – complete with truckloads of rigid insulation and a mile of tongue n’ groove pine – and set the foundation for the log garage, including a 150-foot trench between the house and garage for a thermally-protected injection loop run between the two buildings. The planned geo-to-radiant system in the house would heat the garage, too.

The old 10 SEER central a/c system was disconnected and, tapping the existing trunk-line, Behler job site supervisor Scott Barnett and senior mechanic Bob Seiger installed a 4-ton ClimateMaster Tranquility water-to-air system, a 27 SEER unit that could also provide back-up heat.

Extensive Home Remodel

The home’s 1,000 s.f. basement had previously included a garage (remodeled into a bedroom), lots of storage space and a laundry room. Space also included a bathroom that the Wengers gutted and enlarged, and a study that became the home’s fifth bedroom.

Radiant, at a Glance

The first radiant heat installation wasn’t hydronic. Most of the home’s lower level concrete slab was rigorously cleaned. Crack isolation membrane was attached to hairline fi ssures, and then electric radiant mats were installed prior to thin-setting of ceramic tile and stone flooring. “We knew we’d need floor warming down there for the winter months – the big room is where we’ve placed a bar and pool table,” said Rachel Wenger. “We didn’t want to risk it being uncomfortable.”

While the basement work was under way and the joist bays were open, the Wengers and Yates’ crew stapled up 2,400 lineal feet of synthetic rubber radiant heat tubing to the subfl oor to heat the home’s entire main floor. The many loops were brought back to stainless steel manifolds.

As this was happening, Yates’ crew mounted the hydronic panels which would control hydronic heat fl ow keying off of an outdoor reset. The panel heat source wasn’t the THW water-to-water unit, but one of the 120-gallon, twin-coil indirects. “We used both of the large, internal stainless steel coils to circulate water from the THW,” said Yates. The tank’s 120 gallons of water became the THW’s ‘thermal target’ and the source of all good things, hydronically speaking.”

Geothermal Boiler

ClimateMaster’s threeton water-to-water THW (what Yates refers to as the “geothermal boiler”) is rated at a maximum output of 145°F with a peak COP of 4.5, and that’s with sufficient geo-exchange. Fred Umble, president of Creative Energy Services, a wholesaler based in New Holland, PA, helped Yates choose the right geo equipment and specified a need for three 260- foot bore holes. But the Wengers asked Eriksen to take the holes down further, lengthening each one by another 40 feet.

“We believe this was the reason for one of the big surprises at system startup in December of ‘08,” said Yates. Though temps hovered between 10 and 11 degrees outside, the THW unit was delivering system heat of 157°F, substantially higher than the system was rated for.

That’s a Garage

“We could meet a lot of needs with the THW heating the 120 gallons of water in the main source tank at between 145 and 155 degrees but, still, the three-ton THW couldn’t exceed 36,000 BTUs, so we had to choose carefully what to heat, and how, and insulated real well in all directions. The surprise was that, with house needs seen to, we still had enough BTUs to heat an injection loop to the garage,” said Yates.

They unfurled a large coil of R-fl ex, Watts Radiant’s heavily-insulated, underground tubing with embedded, tandem one-inch supply-and-return tubing (available in various sizes). It was placed inside a four-foot-deep trench between the house and garage. Today, the subterranean tubing thermally connects the buffer tank’s 120-gallon volume with the garage’s slightly smaller two-temperature radiant heat system.

In the heating mode, high temp water (145 to 155°F) is transported via R-fl ex to the garage where it enters another hydronic panel. Source water goes directly into a manifold with four loops that disappear into the ceiling. Unseen, they’re stapled to the under-fl oor of the building’s 600 s.f. upper area that includes a bunkhouse bedroom with four beds, a living room, bathroom, kitchenette and hallway, all radiantly heated.

“You could heat the place with a candle,” affi rms Yates who inspected the insulation under and around the radiant tubing. Staple-up heat is directed upward by R-19 below the tubing. The Wengers achieved an incredible R-90 in the ceiling and upper knee-walls. In the garage’s lower level, only a 10-by-30-foot tool room was radiantly heated. Slab heat was accomplished by pre-insulating that portion of the slab; tubing was then attached to rewire and pressure-tested until the concrete over-pour was good n’ hard.

“Last winter was amazing,” said Rachel Wenger. “Even though all the systems weren’t operational, we had plenty of heat for the house and garage. This winter, with all systems working, we’ll have many more people there to enjoy the warmth inside.”

The THW system sends 145-degree water into a 120-gallon, twin-coil Bradford White indirect water heater which Yates refers to as the “thermal target.” This stored volume of heated water serves as the heat source for the extensive staple-up and in-slab radiant heat zones.

“The Wengers saw an 80-percent drop in energy expenses last winter,” concluded Yates. “The carbon footprint got a lot smaller, but they’ve added tremendously to the size of their comfort zone!”

Original Article Source: ClimateMaster Case Study
Download the Case Study PDF

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When it comes to hearing “it just can’t be done,” Oklahoma City-based Ideal Homes couldn’t be more welcoming of the challenge. Specializing in energy-efficient homes priced under $200,000, Ideal Homes has been racking up a long list of industry firsts for nearly two decades. Among other notable achievements, this list includes being the first builder recognized by the EPA as a “5-Star” Energy.
Builder for Homes Under $150,000 (in 1997), and being the first in the U.S. to build a “Zero Energy Home” priced under $200,000.

Today, Ideal Homes is making residential building history again by delivering geothermal heated and cooled homes at first-time buyer prices, exploding the fast-held believe that only the wealthy can afford high-efficiency technology in their homes. Not only is geothermal provided as an option for every Ideal Homes residential product, it is a standard feature in two Ideal Home neighborhoods, Somer’s Pointe and The Springs at Settlers Ridge, both located in the Oklahoma City metro area.

With more than 7,000 houses under its belt, Ideal Homes has learned a thing or two about building houses with a lower operating cost. Perhaps more importantly, the company has also learned how to sell lower operating cost as a value-added feature in their homes. While some builders insist homeowners are only “buying the box” and can’t sit still for conversations about energy efficiency, Ideal Homes is once again proving the “impossible” can be done by having those conversations directly translate to purchases. In fact, the company closed on approximately 350 geothermal homes in 2013 and expects to close on even more in 2014.

“Energy efficiency has kind of been our forte,” said Steve Shoemaker, director of marketing for Ideal Homes. “It’s pretty easy to sell high-efficiency features in high-end homes. What separates Ideal Homes is the energy efficiency we bring to first-time buyers.”

Taking Geothermal Ground Look Costs Out of the Equation

According to Shoemaker, Ideal Homes determined a long time ago that energy savings really resonates with homebuyers. “No matter what your leanings are environmentally, everybody loves saving money,” Shoemaker said. “When someone walks through our doors, one of the first things we try to talk about is cost of ownership. We remind them that in addition to a mortgage payment, they also have to pay to operate that home. So when someone tells us that they can buy a home of the same square footage that is $10,000 less, we’re able to show them that if they look at the total cost of ownership, our homes are actually a better value.”

Such conversations work well when discussing better windows and insulation, but higher ticket upgrades like geothermal have remained a tough sell because of the upfront expense of the loop field. However, thanks to a unique partnership between Ideal Homes and Caddo Electric Cooperative, the local utility company, homebuyers in two neighborhoods near Oklahoma City are getting all the benefi ts of geothermal without having to bear the upfront cost of the loop fields.

Caddo has developed a program allowing homeowners to forego costs associated with ground loop installation and maintenance in exchange for payment of a monthly thermal energy fee. Caddo assumes responsibility for installing and maintaining the geothermal ground loop system through this program, and charges a permanently fixed monthly fee ($15 to $24 per month on average) to the homeowner for its use. The fee is offset several times over by virtue of the energy savings, as well as by Caddo’s lowest electrical rate, which the utility grants to residences with geothermal systems. The program, which kicked off in the summer of 2012, is available to all homeowners in the Caddo Electric coverage area.

ClimateMaster and the company’s builder development manager, Titian Burris, worked for several years with both Caddo Electric and Ideal Homes to help facilitate the program.

“This was a great opportunity for two entities highly committed to growing the residential geothermal market to overcome any upfront challenges by combining efforts and really make it happen,” said Burris. Now, instead of having to “sell” geothermal, geothermal helps sell Ideal Homes properties, especially in Somer’s Pointe and The Springs at Settlers Ridge, where geothermal is a standard feature.

A Program That Sells Itself

Todd Taylor and his wife, Darise, purchased their home at The Springs at Settlers Ridge in January 2013. Finding a builder that could provide an energy-efficient home was a high priority for the couple and they liked the neighborhood and low-maintenance patio home options at Settlers Ridge. It was serendipitous that the Caddo Electric program just happened to coincide with their decision to buy a new home. When Ideal Homes told them that they could have geothermal heating and cooling as a standard option on their home, Taylor checked out the technology. The deeper he looked, the more convinced he became that choosing a home with geothermal was indeed a smart decision, particularly given the Caddo Electric program.

“I discussed it with several friends that I have in the heating and air business,” said Taylor. “They all said the same thing – I’d be an idiot not to take advantage of the opportunity.

”Now, after living in his new geothermal heated and cooled home, Taylor is even more convinced that he and his wife made the right decision. Not only are they enjoying utility bills that are at least $100 less per month than what they experienced in a similarly sized previous home, they have come to realize geothermal really was the ideal choice for their current property. The home they chose has a small, low-maintenance backyard – no more than 10 yards deep. The last thing Taylor wanted was to have a loud condensing unit taking up precious outdoor space. Instead, the geothermal heat pump that is located in their attic is not only out of the way, it is so quiet that the Taylors hardly notice when it is on.

Taylor is just as pleased with his experience working with Ideal Homes – a company that he likens to a “well-oiled machine.”

“I was very impressed with Ideal Homes through every step of the whole transaction. I really can’t say enough

Sonya McFee, who purchased a home in Somer’s Pointe, is equally delighted with her choice.

“Caddo County Electric and Ideal Homes are truly ahead of the game in making geothermal accessible for the average homeowner,” said McFee. “Taking upfront costs and logistics out of the mix, they’ve enabled people like me to take advantage of the signifi cant savings a geothermal home can offer. I’m excited to no longer have to worry about the thermostat during the hot summer months in Oklahoma, and also to have an HVAC system

Driven to Deliver Energy Efficiency

In 2014, Ideal Homes expects to sell 36 more homes in Somer’s Pointe and 24 more homes in The Springs at Settlers Ridge. The builder’s approach to selling the benefits of geothermal in these homes is straightforward, and fostered by years of tailoring the efficiency message to potential homebuyers.

“We’re trying to give people a logical reason to make an emotional decision,” said Shoemaker. “Home buying is an emotional decision and you can only go so far with logic. So we try and simplify the message. It boils down to this: ‘Geothermal is the most technologically advanced way to heat and cool your home. Here’s how it works and here’s the money it saves you.’”

Keeping customers satisfied after the sale takes experience, commitment and accountability. Ideal Homes is well aware that geothermal systems can only deliver peak efficiency if they are properly applied. Having worked closely with geothermal heat pump manufacturer ClimateMaster for several years, the builder is confident they can get the job done right. And if they have a question, they are fortunate that ClimateMaster’s corporate office is also regional to Oklahoma City.

“We love our local connection with ClimateMaster,” said Shoemaker. “We also appreciate their product. We place a pretty high value on the products that we put in our homes, particularly as we’re the ones that are held accountable for their performance. ClimateMaster’s quality and service have been great. Any issues or questions we’ve had, ClimateMaster has always been very helpful.”

Many things have factored into the growth and success of Ideal Homes. However, Ideal Homes’ willingness to take the road less traveled is what truly separates the company from so many of its competitors.

Original Article Source: ClimateMaster Case Study
Download the Case Study PDF

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Heathly, efficient, high quality and sustainable – buzzwords that attract the home buyer of today, but is it possible to wrap all these qualities into one home? Yes, in fact these are perfect for describing an entire neighborhood of some 217 affordable, energy-efficient homes in northeast Oklahoma City, OK.

Hope Crossing, Central Oklahoma’s Habitat for Humanity (COHFH) fi ve-phase project covering 59 acres located at NE 83rd and Kelley Avenue, features brick, three-bedroom, two-bath homes, each with about 1,250 square feet; all this, and still offered with a very reasonable price tag around $85,000.

Year-Round Comfort

Habitat strives to provide affordable housing, but regulating utility costs in the homes isn’t a controllable option. Oklahoma City is considered a mixed-humid climate requiring significant amounts of both heating and cooling, and combating substantial humidity levels throughout the year. Air conditioning is a must in all new homes, which makes air-based distribution systems the norm. Most new homes use either a central forced-air gas furnace coupled with a split-system air conditioner, or a split-system central air-source heat pump and supplemental resistance heat.

In low-cost single-story houses, typical of the COHFH homes, a standard duct system is used for heating and cooling. While easy to install, they are not the best choice for energy efficiency. In response, ClimateMaster has made it possible for COHFH to offer families extremely energy-efficient homes by donating high-tech Geothermal heating and cooling systems to all the homes in Hope Crossing.

Geothermal systems provide homeowners with year-round comfort, high-efficiency performance, and much lower utility bills, making these homes more affordable for families.

The homes have integrated ground-loop pumping and purging valves in the heat pump to save on space required, equipment cost and field labor content. Additionally, a single 400 ft. geothermal loop is located directly under the floor slab instead of the typical practice of drilling two 200 ft. heat exchangers 20 ft. apart in the lawn, which requires a separate excavation step to manifold them and route the piping into the house.

Upon completion, the homes will also be certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a third-party, independent verification system, which indicates a project is environmentally responsible in its design.

Energy savings produced by the Geothermal units contribute to the points used to obtain LEED certification. All energy loads within Hope Crossing homes are met with electricity.

What does all this mean for the environment? According to Dan Ellis, president of ClimateMaster, the 217 low energy Geothermal homes to be constructed in the Hope Crossing project will collectively save nearly 1,100 metric tons of CO2 per year, or 22,000 metric tons over a nominal 20-year lifespan, compared to the Standard Gas homes that COHFH had been building. If all of the homes had the 2.3 kW solar panel option, another 12,000 metric tons could be saved over 20 years.

Proven Energy Savings

“With all of those elements in place, as well as solar panels, the energy consumption of the homes is reduced by 75 percent,” Ellis said.

“They are going to save over $1,200 a year compared to a Habitat house built last year,” he said. “That is very substantial when you talk about affordability for these homes.”

Habitat CEO Jonathan Reckford said while Habitat homes across the board are becoming more energy-effi cient, Hope Crossing holds a special distinction.

“Hope Crossing is going to be the largest green-build Habitat community in the United States when it’s completed,” he said. “That’s something that is setting the tone and path for the rest of the country as well.”

Original Article Source: ClimateMaster Case Study
Download the Case Study PDF

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For years, Chad Harrell, who works for a real estate and asset management company, has been specifying geothermal heat pump systems for housing developments.

So, when he and his wife started looking for a house in Raleigh, N.C., this type of system became a non-negotiable part of the hunt. “I wanted to show that I could walk the walk, not just talk the talk,” said Harrell.

In 2012, the Harrell family had moved back to North Carolina after several years abroad in London. They knew they wanted a big house for their growing family, but they didn’t want to live out in suburbia. “We wanted a village-like feel where we could connect with the neighborhood and the community,” said Harrell.

The Harrells decided they wanted to live close to Raleigh’s downtown, in an urban environment where they would have access to everything without having to drive. Harrell hadn’t even owned a car in more than six years, and wanted to live in a walkable neighborhood. “We were striving to live a more sustainable lifestyle and do more with less,” he said.

After researching some target areas near downtown, the Harrells opted to rent a place in the historic Glenwood- Brooklyn area, a neighborhood that was built in the early 20th century not far from Raleigh’s business district. They soon fell in love with the neighborhood and started looking for suitable homes to buy there.

“There was significant overgrowth, and it even looked like the front steps were unsafe,” said Harrell. According to Harrell, the smell from the house’s decay was overwhelming. But despite all the challenges, he saw that it had a solid core and shell and believed, with some renovation, it could be the house of his family’s dreams. Plus, he was pre-disposed to like it. “I just have a thing for historic homes,” said Harrell.

Located in a historic district, the home was also a likely candidate for historic preservation tax credits. Harrell worked with architect Meg McLaurin from Meg McLaurin Architecture, who was known for her experience with restoring historic homes. McLaurin’s job was to investigate preservation tax credits and create a strategy for maintaining the integrity of the home’s original design. Together they developed a plan to completely gut the house and restore it as a single-family home.

With the house backing up to Fred Fletcher Park, McLaurin additionally designed a glass wall at the back of the home that would highlight the park’s proximity. “When you open the front door you can see all the way through the house to the wall of glass to the park beyond,” said McLaurin. “It breaks down the inside- outside barrier.”

With the project shaping up to be all he had hoped for in respect to a historic renovation, Harrell turned his focus to making the home as energy efficient as possible. In doing so, he quickly realized that the two tenets are often at odds, including with efforts such as installing rooftop-mounted solar panels and modern high-efficiency windows and doors.

“The historic preservation commission had a strong stance about these things, as they ultimately compromise the home’s original façade,” said Harrell.

General contractor Greg Paul, owner of Greg Paul Builders, provided some much-needed guidance in this respect, having a great deal of experience with sustainable buildings and retrofit projects. He started by working to insulate the home and tighten the building envelope.

“We had to go underneath the house so that we could seal the crawl space,” said Paul. “That’s a little harder to do crawling on your belly in an existing space than in a new construction job.”

Working together on the renewable energy technology that Harrell wanted to incorporate, no matter the measure, Harrell and Paul turned next to how they would retrofit a geothermal heat pump system.

“I kept saying that I was not going to take no for an answer,” said Harrell. “I absolutely needed this superior HVAC technology in order to achieve my energy efficiency goals for the home.”

When reaching out to his go-to mechanical contractor, Greg Paul was told that despite Harrell’s feelings, geothermal was just not a possibility. “They said that Chad’s house wasn’t a candidate for geothermal because there was nowhere to put the borehole field,” said Paul. The Harrell’s backyard was just too small. “But that just made Chad all the more determined to do it,” he said.

So, Paul went to another contractor for a second opinion.

That second opinion came from Louis Agnolutto, the owner of Louis Heating & Cooling, Inc. He and his team ultimately decided the best solution was to drill two 435-ft deep boreholes sideways in the front yard of the property, one on each side of the porch.

“Each borehole has two inch-and-a-quarter pipes. One takes the water down and one brings the water up,” said Agnolutto. “The boreholes are also registered with the state according to their GPS coordinates, just in case anyone ever needs to know exactly where they are.”

To complete the system, Agnolutto specified 2.5-ton Tranquility® 22 Digital (TZ) Series and a Tranquility® Digital Indoor Split (TES) Series heat pump unit from ClimateMaster, which were installed in the basement (delivering heating and cooling to the first floor) and attic (delivering heating and cooling to the second and third floors).

Agnolutto has been installing geothermal heat pump systems since the 1990s. He said he has used many manufacturers’ equipment, but always comes back to ClimateMaster. “I decided on ClimateMaster for a couple of reasons,” said Agnolutto. “They make a good basic unit. The cabinetry is sound and solid. The equipment and parts are proven.”

“I’m using all ClimateMaster products, I’m not using anything else,” said Agnolutto. According to him, this is partly due to the fact that ClimateMaster units are easily customizable to fit the energy needs of his clients.

The overall renovation timeline spanned a little less than seven months (winter of 2012 to spring of 2013) from beginning to end—with the HVAC installation taking place during the last month of the timeline.

“We were able to move into our home just a couple of weeks before the birth of our twin daughters,” said Harrell.

According to Harrell, federal and state tax credits for historic preservation and the incorporation of renewable energy technologies were key to the financing of the project.

David Parker, president of security and energy-efficiency firm E2 Technology, consulted with Harrell on how to best achieve his energy efficiency goals while maximizing tax incentives. This included reaching ENERGY STAR rating specifications and those of the North Carolina High Efficiency Residential Option (HERO) code, both of which would defray some of his energy and building costs.

“We sat down and set up a plan as to how we would certify the home to those standards,” said Parker. “By certifying the house to ENERGY STAR standards, for example, the Harrells are eligible for a five percent rebate on their gas and electricity bills throughout the life of the home.”

In addition, the builders tried to minimize construction waste as much as possible and to preserve as much of the core materials as they could. For example, they used original beams from the house, made from 200-year-old wood, to build a new staircase in the home’s addition.

Greg Paul agrees that the project required a lot of effort, but that the effort was well-directed. “The house is super energy-efficient, particularly within the realm of historical work,” he said. “Those two things are hard to bring together, but I think in this case we were able to play both sides of the fence pretty efficiently and satisfactorily.”

As for Chad Harrell, he couldn’t be more pleased. “I think it turned out to be even better than we anticipated,” he said. The family, which includes three small children, moved into the house in May of 2013. Since then, he estimates his energy cost savings at about 50 percent, at least compared to neighbors with homes of approximately the same size. In fact, some of his neighbors have said they’ve been encouraged to consider installing geothermal heat pump systems in their own homes, now that they know it can be done.

With many project elements to highlight, Harrell admits he is most proud of the energy efficiency makeover, and particularly persevering in the home’s retrofit geothermal system. In fact, he is taking a “Say it Loud, Say it Proud” stance, and doesn’t much care for the fact that landscapers were able to skillfully camouflage the boreholes with mulch and a flower bed.

“I want to put up a sign in the front yard that says, “Renewable Energy: At Work Under Your Feet,” said Harrell.

Original Article Source: ClimateMaster.com Case Study
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