Geothermal Energy in Calgary?

[Table 5]

Since it's time to replace the furnace soon, we're looking into converting our house (in Calgary) to be able to use some form of alternate energy....and geothermal has come up as an option.

Has anyone here done this before? Would you recommend it? How much money can we expect to spend? I'm basically starting from square one here, so any tips or thoughts would be great. Are there any government incentives?

And on that note, is solar energy viable yet in Alberta? I know in the States, ther are a few government incentives....not sure if that's the case upstairs.

[sclitheroe]

You need to be certain of your reasons for doing it. Economically and environmentally, I don’t think, in Alberta, that a heat pump solution will yield substantial benefits.

This article here: http://www.climatechangecentral.com/...umps_in_AB.pdf

points out that a heat pump relies on electricity, which is a worse GHG contributor than natural gas in Alberta due to coal-fired generation. The article ultimately concludes that its a wash, with heat pumps not substantially contributing to a reduction in GHG.

It’s quite an interesting question overall though, and I’m looking forward to seeing the responses in this thread.

[GreatWhiteEbola]

double post

[GreatWhiteEbola]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Since it's time to replace the furnace soon, we're looking into converting our house (in Calgary) to be able to use some form of alternate energy....and geothermal has come up as an option.

Has anyone here done this before? Would you recommend it? How much money can we expect to spend? I'm basically starting from square one here, so any tips or thoughts would be great. Are there any government incentives?

And on that note, is solar energy viable yet in Alberta? I know in the States, ther are a few government incentives....not sure if that's the case upstairs.

Ohhhh, tell us more about how things are better there...

Enmax is going to be leasing solar panels for residential users.
http://www.enmax.com/Energy/Res/Gree...chnologies.htm

As for geothermal, this might help.

http://www.groundsourceenergy.com/

[Shazam]

Last time I checked into geothermal it was about $60K to put a system in. You also get the added bonus of getting your front or backyard totally destroyed.

I think solar panel installation in Calgary still requires a development permit, even though they've talking about removing that requirement for the last four years or so.

[Table 5]

Originally Posted by GreatWhiteEbola

Ohhhh, tell us more about how things are better there...

I'm surprised you frostbacks even have electricity these days!

Thanks for all the links guys....definitely some good reading. Interesting to note the the coal-generated electricity is what offsets the benefits of the geothermal in Alberta.

I'm pretty surprised solar power isn't more prevalent. The constant sun in alberta (well, most of the time) seems like a pretty great resource, and one that could be taken advantage of more.

[Azure]

I think with the chinooks, unstable temperatures, and relatively mild winters, its not worth it for a house.

NG is a much better option.

[Bownesian]

For most houses in Calgary it would be far better to put that money and energy into better windows and insulation.

[Table 5]

Originally Posted by Bownesian

For most houses in Calgary it would be far better to put that money and energy into better windows and insulation.

Yep, that's definitely part of the plan. A lot less sexier of course, but pretty important.

[Bownesian]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Yep, that's definitely part of the plan. A lot less sexier of course, but pretty important.

I would say it's the most important.

A few years back, we went from a 1960's era 780 ft^2 bungalow where we added insulation in every room we renovated (but didn't replace the windows or doors) to a late 80's era 2800 ft^2 2-story built with 6" walls and excellent windows. Our gas usage didn't change at all (though the electrical bill went up because there are more lights for Mrs. Bownesian to leave on).

I was astonished that tripling the external surface area didn't increase the heating load. Our new place is so well insulated that we can't hardly hear the train that rumbles by 10 times a day about 80m from my bedroom window.

[macker]

What is the cost of conserving a barrel of oil for use in heating a home versus buying a $80 barrel of oil to heat the same home? Why would anyone ever spend any money on solar photovoltaics, wind, geothermal etc. before they did everything possible to reduce the demand for energy in a home by proper design including the best windows, heating system, and as much insulation as possible.

In Europe more than 6,000 Passivhaus dwellings have been built but there are only a handful in North America. Most of the heat "collected" in these houses comes from the sun or the earth, which stays around ten degrees when you go down about fifteen feet. Idea is $till luke warm. Homebuilders/governments/economics are not on board....

[bc-chris]

my wife and i built a house 5 years ago

we looked at geothermal and it's pretty pricey - we were told $20k-$30k

have you thought of a heat pump with a high efficiency furnace??

the heat pump is good (friends of ours have one) - but apparently they cost a ton to fix if anything goes wrong

we ended up settling on a high efficiency furnace and a hi-end a/c unit (you need a/c in kelowna)

[algernon]

Originally Posted by bc-chris

my wife and i built a house 5 years ago

we looked at geothermal and it's pretty pricey - we were told $20k-$30k

have you thought of a heat pump with a high efficiency furnace??

the heat pump is good (friends of ours have one) - but apparently they cost a ton to fix if anything goes wrong

we ended up settling on a high efficiency furnace and a hi-end a/c unit (you need a/c in kelowna)

When you say heat pump, are you refering to an Energy Recovery Ventilator or an Heat Recovery Ventilator?
I will be you using an HRV in my new suite, as Code requires me to provide a minimum amount of air changes per hour, and I'm not installing a separate conventional forced air furnace.

I've heard it depends where you live as to the cost. My buddy drills these types of wells at his job and said that people sometimes drill 100's of feet before it's suitable. I also believe you may be able to go as shallow as 30' in some areas, albeit with more wells.

[You Need a Thneed]

My Brother and his wife have geothermal, combined with solar water heat, (and natural gas backup), it seems to work great. You might not save a lot of money in the winter, but they basically get free air conditioning in the summer. They rent the system, although you can buy it as well.

You would definately need a lot of solar water heat to be able to go without natural gas, though there are some houses that are doing it.

Thier house is a new Emerge by Avalon Master Builders.

[bc-chris]

Originally Posted by algernon

When you say heat pump, are you refering to an Energy Recovery Ventilator or an Heat Recovery Ventilator?
I will be you using an HRV in my new suite, as Code requires me to provide a minimum amount of air changes per hour, and I'm not installing a separate conventional forced air furnace.

hmmmm - i'm not sure. i know our builder offered it as an option. we didn't go with it mainly due to budget constraints

i know it acts as a heater in the winter and an air conditioner in the summer - and it looks like an air conditioner.

i know we have a heat exchanger on our furnace - in the summer it helps cool the hot incoming air and in the winter it warms the cold incoming air.

[Burninator]

Before you start buying new windows and more insulation you would be better off buying energy efficient appliances, like the energy star stuff. A better washer and dryer can probably save you as much money on energy as you would get back from solar panels.

[Knalus]

Originally Posted by macker

What is the cost of conserving a barrel of oil for use in heating a home versus buying a $80 barrel of oil to heat the same home? Why would anyone ever spend any money on solar photovoltaics, wind, geothermal etc. before they did everything possible to reduce the demand for energy in a home by proper design including the best windows, heating system, and as much insulation as possible.

In Europe more than 6,000 Passivhaus dwellings have been built but there are only a handful in North America. Most of the heat "collected" in these houses comes from the sun or the earth, which stays around ten degrees when you go down about fifteen feet. Idea is $till luke warm. Homebuilders/governments/economics are not on board....

This Passivhaus idea is really interesting to me - I'd love to use quite a few of those ideas in building a new detached garage. I wouldn't want to spend much money on heating a garage like that, but if the building kept itself at least a few degrees warmer than the outside throughout the winter, that might be enough for something like that.

[Bill Bumface]

I haven't done the research myself, but from what I've heard the small ultra efficient natural gas boilers will pretty much destroy most other options in effeciency.