 Are Geothermal Heat Pumps Expensive? NOT TODAY! Here’s why; • Fossil fuel (propane or fuel oil) energy costs are outrageously high and getting higher. • Geothermal heat pumps energy cost are 50-75% lower than a standard heating system. • Geothermal has a 3-5 yr return on investment. Example: A family located in Southwest MI had a 5 yr old home. Their heating cost where $3600 per year. They added a geothermal heat pump (like the system pictured on right) to their existing propane heating system. In the first year they experienced a 75% energy savings of $2700. The investment in equipment was $10,500. They realized taking $2700 in energy savings and divide it into $10,500 they would get a return on their investment in 3.9 years. Once the equipment is paid for the $2700 is now extra cash that can be used for other expenses. Because this system was installed in 2007 they did not qualify for the current energy tax credit which could have been $3150 off their federal tax liability. I personally installed a geothermal heat pump in my 2000 sq. ft. home January 1991 and my heating and cooling cost are averaging $500 per yr. Think about this: You pay the money regardless; if you invest in energy saving equipment (Note: when the equipment is paid off the extra money is in your pocket) or you will continue to pay the utility companies high energy cost every year. GEOTHERMAL HEAT PUMPS Geothermal heat pumps are in virtually every region of United States and they are the most energy-efficient heating and cooling systems available today. Home owners who have installed a geothermal heat pump have lowered their energy cost 50 to 70% and are enjoying a high level of comfort. Geothermal technology relies primarily on the earth’s natural thermal energy, a renewable source, to heat or cool a house or multi-family dwelling. The only additional energy geothermal systems require it’s the small amount of electricity they employed to concentrate what Mother Nature provides to circulate high-quality heating and cooling throughout the home. Geothermal heat pump is just that, a heat pump. It is moving or pumping heat from one source to another. For example: during the winter heat is pumped from the warm earth into the home or during the summer heat is pumped from the home to the cooler earth. Another good example: is the home refrigerator. Have you noticed the heat that is coming from the bottom of your refrigerator? The heat you feel is being pumped out of the freezer and expelled into the atmosphere around the refrigerator keeping the freezer at a freezing 0°. Geothermal operates based on the stability of underground temperatures: the shallow ground, this is the upper 10 feet of the Earth’s surface, has a very stable temperature throughout the year - between 50 and 61°F, depending upon location's annual climate. What is heat? Heat is nothing more than molecules in motion. You have molecules in motion all the way down to -459° below zero. This is where all motions stops and there is no more heat available to move. So there is a lot of heat available to move at 50-61° ground temperatures. Why are geothermal heat pumps so efficient? According to the U.S. environmental protection agency (EPA) geothermal systems are,” the most energy-efficient, environmentally clean, and cost-effective space conditioning systems available today.” Extremely high levels of efficiency are possible because a geothermal heat pump only uses electricity to move heat, not produce it. A geothermal unit typically supplies 4 to 5 units of heat energy for every unit of electricity used. Three to four of these units of heat energy come directly from the earth itself, and are clean, free and a renewable. The other unit of energy is used to power the compressor, fan, and controls. That is why geothermal heat pumps are 400 to 500% efficient | 
