What Is a Water-Source Heat Pump?

Lakeside living offers stunning scenery, recreational opportunities, and a relaxing environment in Idaho.

Do you know it also provides an opportunity for clean, energy-efficient heating and cooling?

The lake or private pond just beyond your doorstep in Eagle may be perfect for a geothermal heating and cooling system. If you are fortunate to have a body of water or a well on your property, you can tap these natural features and use a water-source heat pump to create a geothermal heating and cooling system.

Selecting a Geothermal Expert in Greater Boise

Western Heating & Air Conditioning can help you use this natural resource to benefit your home indoors. We have over 50 years of experience in the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) industry, serving customers in the Eagle, Idaho, and surrounding areas.

We maintain, repair, and install air-source heat pumps and geothermal systems. Our pros can assess your property and determine if a geothermal HVAC is the best choice for your home.

How Heat Pumps Work

Electric heat pumps, like air conditioners, extract heat from your indoor air and move it to the outdoors through refrigerant. Unlike your AC, a heat pump can work in reverse, collecting heat from outside your home and moving it indoors via refrigerant to warm up your living space.

An air-source heat pump moves heat from the outdoor air to inside your home during winter. Because air temperatures can vary widely, from above freezing to below freezing to subzero, heat pump performance also varies. An air-source heat pump may struggle to move heat efficiently in freezing temperatures.  

You may need a secondary heat source, such as a furnace, that can kick in when your air-source heat pump loses efficiency. A better choice for efficient heating and cooling is a geothermal system.

Geothermal vs Air-Source Heat Pumps

Unlike an air-source heat pump, which relies in part on outdoor temperatures, a geothermal system keeps your home toasty by moving heat from underground or underwater, where the temperature is more consistent than outdoor air temperatures.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the temperature under the earth’s surface ranges from 45° to 75° Fahrenheit. The department notes that the underground temperature is colder than the air temperature during the summer and hotter than outdoor air in the winter.

Geothermal Loops

Most geothermal systems use a closed loop of durable plastic tubing filled with an environmentally friendly antifreeze liquid. The tubing runs from your water-source or ground-source heat pump to underwater or underground and back to the heat pump.

A heat exchanger moves heat to and from the antifreeze solution and the refrigerant inside your heat pump.

If you plan to use a lake or pond for your closed-loop system, our Western Heating & Air Conditioning pros will submerge tubing coils in the water. The loops connect to tubing that runs to and from your water-source heat pump.

In an open loop system, water from a well, pond, or lake carries the heat. Instead of running through a closed loop, the water discharges into your pond or lake.

An open loop system can be a practical solution for your heating and cooling needs if the water is fresh and your system meets water discharge codes and regulations.

Geothermal System Benefits

• Longevity: Loops can last more than 50 years, and other system components can work for up to 24 years.
• Energy Saving: The DOE says geothermal systems can cut energy bills by up to 65 percent compared to traditional HVAC systems such as gas furnaces and boilers.
• Environmentally Friendly: Geothermal systems do not emit harmful gases because they transfer heat rather than burn fuel such as oil and gas. They can help you reduce your carbon footprint!
• Minimal Digging: Using a body of water for your geothermal system minimizes digging on your property. A ground-source heat pump connects to vertical or horizontal loops. Vertical loops require deep drilling. Horizontal loops sit in trenches up to eight feet deep and can sprawl over a large portion of your property.

With loops submerged in your lake or pond, the only digging necessary is for tubing buried between the loops and your water-source heat pump.

Harness Mother Nature for HVAC Comfort!

Turn your pond or lake into a heating and cooling source for your Eagle, Idaho, home. Let Western Heating & Air Conditioning show you how a water-source heat pump can save money and energy while enhancing comfort. Call us at 208-319-1736 or request service online.