Is geothermal HVAC disruptive?

 

The first time I’d ever heard of a disruptive technology, it didn’t sound like good news to me. As it turns out, the term refers to a technology that changes the way we do things— usually for good.  Perhaps you’ve heard the story of buggy whips?  Not much need for them after motor vehicles came along.

My own personal experience involved tube style TVs.  I needed to buy a replacement TV to fit my entertainment center, because my 35” color TV finally quit. Having had no reason to shop for a television in years, I was shocked to find that tube style TVs were no longer sold.

I’ve been involved with GHPs for 26 years, since starting EggGeothermal in 1989. I was pleased to find that the Energy Information Administration (EIA), a division of the DOE, was reporting sales and had produced a graph in 2009.  At that point, the Federal Stimulus Package of 2009 was signed into law, and things began to heat up for renewable technologies with a nice 30% federal tax credit.

But the Fed stopped reporting GHP shipments, and nobody, of which I’m aware, had any real ideas of how things were going.

 

On larger projects, owners sometimes need a level of comfort that may not be quite there yet. Even when geothermal exchange has been proven as effective and efficient at a local level, some require a feasibility report be completed for further assurances. That information is available and can be applied to specific projects effectively. Just contact the geothermal industry organizations; they are there to help you succeed.

Like many before you, the first couple of geothermal projects undertaken will and should be carefully executed. Once you’ve reached a level of reasonable confidence, you’ll want to attend geothermal exchange training to provide certification for your efforts going forward. Then you can be listed on the geothermal industry websites as a geothermal professional/contracting entity, providing the same help to clients and fellow professionals according to your own wishes.

The International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) and the Geothermal Exchange Organization (GEO) are your resources for all of these efforts.

 

Recently though, a friend to the geothermal industry, Tom Konrad, wrote a piece in Forbes in which he posted a graph gleaned from a Navigant study.

 

I fed some information from the Navigant graph to John Fontano, an old friend and former employee who is pretty handy with Excel, and he came up with this graph, over which I superimposed an illustration of a disruptive technology trend.

It seems obvious that geothermal is a disruptive technology. If you’re wondering if that’s a good thing- it is.

If you’ve been dragging your feet, it’s not too late.  Here what you need to do to get involved:

Geothermal HVAC is the way the industry is going, and right now is the perfect time to get in. Here are some pointers that will help you to get involved and claim your piece of a phenomenal growth market.

With geothermal, you get to take advantage of your current customer base and skill-set, because geothermal exchange systems are typically similar to standard mechanical system inside the building. The geothermal exchanger is new piece to most, so you’ll want to identify a good partner with which to work on the first projects you contract. Depending on the project(s), you will need one or more other local geothermal drillers or designers to assist you on the first few. A good geothermal contractor will help you to complete a competent ground loop or well system to complement what you’re probably already doing for the building inside. He will probably even have knowledge of the geological conditions and be able to help you get right down to business.

Many manufacturers have a line of geothermal/water sourced equipment. You’ll want to select a brand that can support your efforts in a wide variety of markets.

In larger projects, owners sometimes need a level of comfort that may not be quite there yet. Even when geothermal exchange has been proven as effective and efficient at a local level, some require a feasibility report be completed for further assurances. That information is available and can be applied to specific projects effectively. Just contact the geothermal industry organizations; they are there to help you succeed.

Like many before you, the first couple of geothermal projects undertaken will and should be carefully executed. Once you’ve reached a level of reasonable confidence, you’ll want to attend geothermal exchange training to provide certification for your efforts going forward. Then you can be listed on the geothermal industry websites as a geothermal professional/contracting entity, providing the same help to clients and fellow professionals according to your own wishes.

The International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) and the Geothermal Exchange Organization (GEO) are your resources for all of these efforts.

Don’t forget to get your name and support onto the National Geothermal Day website. These are the groups to which you and others can and should go to get information, training and list your company as a geothermal heating and cooling entity.

I’m not saying that standard AC’s, heat pumps and furnaces are “buggy-whips” or “tube-TV’s”.  Let’s just say I’m not inclined to wait around and see what happens.

Jay Egg is a geothermal consultant, writer, and the owner of EggGeothermal. He has co-authored two textbooks on geothermal HVAC systems published by McGraw-Hill Professional. He can be reached at jayegg.geo@gmail.com.