ESOL Magazine June 2014 | Page 6

Renewable source of energy I n the past 15 years science has brought to our world one of the efficient and valuable sources of renewable energy called ground source heat pumps. It will allow you to heat your home with energy from the ground. This kind of heating system was under research for many decades and has finally proved itself as economical and reliable. The idea of ground source heating is to use heat from different layers of ground, because the heat which is accumulated either by solar energy or heat from the earth’s core is gradually transferred towards the earth surface. A ground source heat pump circulates a mixture of water and antifreeze around a loop of pipe – called a ground loop – which is buried in your garden. Heat from the ground is absorbed into the fluid and then passes through a heat exchanger into the heat pump. The ground stays at a fairly constant temperature under the surface, so the heat pump can be used throughout the year – even in the middle of winter. The system requires a high level of initial financial investment but it will quickly pay itself off over a period of time. Currently there are two types of ground source of heating. Firstly I would like to tell you about the horizontal type which is ideal for properties with big plots and involves a lot of digging of trenches. In contrast the vertical type, which suits properties with limited size of the plots, will require drilling boreholes minimum 35 meters and downwards. The deeper the borehole then the more heat it will generate. 1.