Why are ground source heat pumps so efficient?
Learn more about why GSHPs are regarded as one of the most energy efficient heating and cooling technologies around.
It might surprise you to learn that even when it’s below zero with three feet of snow on the ground that the temperature in the earth six feet below you remains at around 50°F. This also holds true in the summer: in early August, this same area will stay at around 60-70°F. The earth absorbs close to half of the sunlight that reaches us, but it takes a significant amount of heat to change the temperature of the earth. Since the earth several feet under you isn’t exposed to the air, it is able to maintain a relatively constant temperature year-round, even in climates like the Northeast.
In short, the ground under you will always be warmer than your home in winter and cooler in the summer. This makes the earth an effective reservoir for either extracting heat from in the winter or using as a heat sink in the summer. As a result, it doesn't take very much electricity to transfer heat into and out of the ground throughout the year, keeping annual operating costs among the lowest for any heating technology a consumer can purchase.