ᐅ Experiences with Ground Source Heat Pumps

Created on: 23 Oct 2015 21:40
S
Saruss
Hello,
here I would like to share some experiences and data regarding my brine heat pump and deep drilling, based in part on the expert’s "questionnaire":

a) What is the soil composition on your property?
Up to 3m (10 feet) silty, fine sandy, clayey soil
Up to 4m (13 feet) slope debris, rock fragments
Then bedrock (mainly limestone)

b) How deep was the drilling?
Drilled twice to a depth of 72m (236 feet)

c) How much did the drilling cost?
€10,400 including double U-probes DN25
Grouting material with 2.0 W/mK thermal conductivity
Permitting process (building permit / planning permission)
Pressure-tight house entry at the basement and underground routing of supply lines (about 25m (82 feet))
Filling/draining equipment, filling, pressure testing, etc. (all inclusive)

d) How much did the system cost?
System: Tecalor TTc 05 with heating output at B0/W35 of 5.8 kW and coefficient of performance (COP) of 4.8
Cost: €9,800

e) Were there any difficulties during installation, if so, what kind?
Because the water used to flush out the drilled material during drilling seeped away, a "small compressor" was needed to blow it out with air. However, it had to be placed on a neighbor’s property who had not yet started building. The machine was the size and approximate weight of a 20-ton truck but was off-road capable. This caused a 2-day delay because the compressor first had to be transported to our site. No additional costs were charged.

f) How is the daily operation?
"Like a refrigerator." Once the parameters on the heating system are correctly set, the only thing that should be done is occasionally reading the information/data such as operating hours and source temperature. Otherwise, it runs "on its own," just like any heating system. When the door is closed, the unit is virtually inaudible. Very discreet since, apart from the cabinet in the utility room, nothing else is visible (all brine pipes are underground).

e) What are the operating costs for which living area?
Currently, a living area of 180sqm (1937 sqft) is heated, plus an additional 65sqm (700 sqft) of cellar space within the insulated thermal envelope (these rooms are around 15-16°C (59-61°F) on the coldest days). From September 2014 to September 2015, 2,000 kWh of electricity was consumed for heating and hot water (2 adults, 1 baby, 1 toddler). The house is a KfW-70 standard building according to the 2009 energy saving regulations, which already met the required technical standards before the central ventilation system with enthalpy heat exchanger was installed (we decided to add this after the initial applications).

f) to be continued ....

Note regarding the comparison of the coefficient of performance (COP):
Since optimizing the heating curve and settings at the end of last year, the system has had a COP of about 5.5. Operating hours are around 1200; the deep borehole was drilled approximately 20% deeper than initially recommended by the companies, at our own request.
S
Sebastian79
31 Dec 2015 20:39
BeHaElJa schrieb:
When in doubt, the drilling company. The brine is also listed on the invoice; but of course, it might not be comparable.

See?

What concentration do you have?
O
oleda222
1 Jan 2016 11:50
As long as you don’t have just water in the borehole, it doesn’t really make sense to limit the temperature to just above 2 degrees Celsius (35.6°F).

The brine solution is used as antifreeze.
M
MeisterBob
1 Jan 2016 18:27
First of all, a Happy New Year to everyone!
@Sebastian79: The heating system was commissioned on 05.11.14, and the total energy produced so far is 5366 kWh.
S
Sebastian79
1 Jan 2016 19:26
Thank you, same to you.

But that is a poor annual performance factor... If I were to guess, I would blame the unnecessary buffer tanks including the small fireplace. The latter is often very difficult to integrate without disturbing the rather sensitive overall system.
L
Legurit
1 Jan 2016 19:33
That's just below three.. could it be that there's electric heating involved? That’s really not ideal for a brine-to-water heat pump.
M
MeisterBob
1 Jan 2016 20:09
Of course, wood is abundantly available for free, which is why we have the fireplace. However, I don’t see the point in burning it wastefully.
The electric heating element is turned off and definitely won’t activate.
I’m not saying it’s the most economical solution, using a ground-source heat pump plus a hydronic fireplace. However, we are very satisfied with the annual heating pads and are fully aware of the higher initial investment costs.

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