Well, up front cost might account for part of it, but when you look at the long term benefits of reduced operation cost (30-60%), extensive useful life of components (25-50 years) and lack of environmental assault (no use of fossil fuel), this should be mandatory for all new home construction.

In fact, it could even be argued that building green is patriotic. The article from a week ago speaks for itself, regardless of the clearly slanted source site. Personally, I also like Thomas L. Friedman's open approach and his editorial comments on other oil based energy policy mistakes the US is currently making, but the NY Times is facing financial issues and makes linking to his work directly difficult.

I feel opinions should be heard and discussed to achieve new insight, not guarded and purchased, so I will go over, under, or around the NY Times wall to provide it if I can find it. Ethical? Your call. Just because others are doing it isn't my defense. Freedom of information is.

I'll step off my soapbox now.

Anyway, for a guy who is all about efficiency, recycles just about everything he can, and throws away as little as possible, I'm stunned that I'm just now learning about the beauty of Geothermal Heat Pumps, known as GHP's.

You can learn TONS more than I could summarize at the US DOE.

With natural gas deregulation devastating pocketbooks across Georgia, I'd suggest getting in touch with Anchor Heating and Air. They are based out of Douglasville and have done over 600 GHP installations on new and existing homes in Georgia.

I called them this morning, right after I finished reading this article (copied below with credit in case the link expires).

I've been in Georgia seven weeks now and have only had the pleasure of a $249 gas bill from Scana Energy for the time frame of 12/6 through 12/21, a mere two weeks of billing. I can't wait to see what a whopper my next bill is for a full 30 days of use.

For my family it's unpleasant to pay such a bill, but possible.

The families I worry about are those who are just barely scraping by, who find themselves forced to choose between heat and food, or dependency on the generosity of business.

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A CLOSER LOOK: Geothermal system eliminates gas bill
F.N. Rosenstock - For the Journal-Constitution
Sunday, January 22, 2006

When Brent Verrill's neighbor recently complained to him about her $400 gas bill, he listened with friendly concern. However, he hasn't experienced the sticker shock of rising natural gas prices since 2002. In fact, he hasn't had a natural gas bill since then, and for 2005, his electric bills averaged $89 a month. Yet he remains cool in summer and warm in winter. The answer is a geothermal heating and cooling system.

"When natural gas was deregulated a few years ago, I anticipated the price would quadruple," says Verrill. So he started looking into other ways to heat and cool his home.

During his research, he learned from the Atlanta-based Southface Energy Institute about geothermal heating and cooling, a system that relies on the temperature consistency of the Earth's core in contrast to traditional systems that rely on air temperature.

So when he and his wife, Kristin, renovated their 1925 house in one of Atlanta's historic districts, Whittier Mill Village, there was no question their renovation would include a geothermal heating and cooling system.

The four pipes necessary for the closed- loop system are buried in their large side yard 200 feet deep and spaced 15 feet apart. During the renovation, they added new interior pipes, but Barry Tysor of Anchor Heating & Air says a system can be retrofitted using existing pipes. "It depends on the condition of the pipes," he notes.

Tysor has been installing geothermal systems for 16 years, originally at the request of Greystone Power Co. in Douglasville. "They wanted to offer options to their customers," explains Tysor. Geothermal systems qualify for EnergyStar credits. He says other energy incentives vary from state to state. According to Tysor, there are currently no incentives in the state of Georgia.

The size of a geothermal system is driven by the size of the house, the number of windows and the house's insulation. The system is a series of pipes, roughly one circuit of piping for every ton of heating and air conditioning. For example, a 2,500-square-foot house requires 3 to 4 tons, which means three to four closed-loop circuits. Four-inch diameter holes, 200 to 250 feet deep and 15 feet apart, are drilled for each circuit of 3/4-inch polyethylene piping. The top layer is about 3 feet below the surface, where the pipes are joined underground. Two pipes, one to bring water in, the other to take it out, enter a house below grade. The pipes connect to a geothermal heat pump, which is regulated by a thermostat.

The system takes advantage of the Earth's constant ground temperature by extracting heat and energy from a house like a traditional heating and cooling system. The difference is a geothermal system displaces it into the ground where it's cooler, unlike traditional systems that displace it into the air.

There is also an energy-efficient by-product of this system --- it produces hot water. "This system can provide 70 percent to 100 percent of a home's hot water during the peak of summer," notes Tysor.

The process reverses in winter. Heat is brought in from the ground to the house. "It doesn't dry out the air as much as a traditional heating system," Tysor says, "so there's less need for a humidifier."

Best of all, there is a 40 percent to 60 percent savings compared with a traditional high-efficiency heating and cooling system.

A system can be installed in new construction in one week. If a home's existing duct system is adequate, a house can be retrofitted in one week, too. Compared with a traditional high-efficiency system, a geothermal system costs 1 1/2 times more to install.

While electric bills are lower in summer than they would be with a traditional system, the biggest benefit is no gas bill. So when Verrill renovated, he removed all of his interior gas pipes and capped off the feeder pipe outside. With his house on the market, he chuckles, "If the next owners want gas, they can have it."

However, he doesn't see why anyone would want to go back to gas, especially after seeing his utility bills. "It performs beautifully," he says.

For more information about geothermal heating and cooling systems, visit www.eere.energy.gov/geothermal or www.geoexchange.org. For information about sustainable building technologies, visit www.southface.org.