geothermal chiller

Once you are done c'mon up & install mine :D

My 24' x 36' garage foundation is going in sometime in the next 2-3 months. So to avoid ME digging I'm going to have to decide what to install and HOW. I have a stream 40' from where this is going. So ground water is only maybe 2-3' down, I am assuming wet soil. The excavator has already warned me about problems with pouring & ground water. And of course we get 2 weeks of rain

I'm planning on at least 2 loops for 2 systems
Install the tubing in the:

#1 ground
OR
#2 Concrete

or - I would say NO - poor heat transfer
#3 Rock that is used to
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7358906#post7358906 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by douggiestyle
this seems pretty awesome.
pipe size/type
depth of hole
soil type
regional temp
etc.

its too much for my feeble brain on a saturday afternoon.

someone else give it a whirl.

http://www.groundloopdesign.com/demo.html
Click to expand...

Have you tried it yet? Looks like in order to get the horizontal module you need to upgrade to the pro version.:mad:
 
Ive been trying to find out and cant seem to do so, I read over this thread quickly and may have missed it, what is the constant temperature underground, and at what depth is that temp reached? Reguardless of where in the US you are, there is a consistent temperature at some depth correct?
 
Unfortunately, not. The deep ground temp varies on location and soil type. Rule of thoumb though is that it is around 15C (plus or minus 2C) at a depth of 12 ft. I had a nice chart showing the variation of groundwater temperatures around the US, but I have misplaced it. Perhaps, if I get some time, I will poke around the internet and find it again.
 
For my foundation they are going down 4' below grade
The excavator is planning on starting maybe beginning of June
So I have until then to figure this out - 2 weeks
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7372739#post7372739 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Scuba_Dave
For my foundation they are going down 4' below grade
The excavator is planning on starting maybe beginning of June
So I have until then to figure this out - 2 weeks
Click to expand...


Dave,

The closer you are to the concrete foundation the bigger chance you have of picking up heat from the basement or whatever is on the other side of the wall. It would be better to stay away from any structure that pokes above grade.

The fact that your water table is high is a plus. The piping - whatever your choice - will transfer better if it is wet and it is best to bed and fill in sand that is compacted to about 95%. This is pretty easy to do with sand.

Better yet, at least as far as heat transfer, would be to have a concrete slab with the piping buried in the center of it and located at the low grade point. Cost wise this probably won't life cycle out so stick to the compacted sand bed. (Does it look like I am just rambling here?)

Hey what about the stream that you have running thru your property. Have you checked the summer temperatures of that? Maybe it would be difficult to place piping in the stream bed but it might be worth a look.
 
the above ground loop prog has tables for area lived in soil type and moisture level.

it does work even the trial version

done it.

no time to work with it, flash decompiling, eating up my computer time, sorry.
 
Has anyone given thought to not using a ground loop at all and just using the cold water supply to your house as the cooling agent? I posted earlier in the thread but it hasn't seemed to go anyplace. I already have all the cold water I could ever want three feet away from my sump. Why go through all the hassle of a ground loop when I can just put a T on my cold water supply use a solenoid valve on my temp controller, and place a coil/radiator in my sump? It seems a lot easier to me. Of course I have my own well so I'm not paying for the water other than pumping it.

BTW ââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“ I still havenââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t been able to figure out what the flow rate would need to be so Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢m just going to wing it and adjust as needed. Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢m thinking of just buying some 3/8ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ titanium tubing and bending it to make my own radiator for the sump. Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢m thinking 10 feet of tubing should do it? If not Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢ll just buy some more and link them together.
 
You are talking about an open loop geothermal system and they work very well. My only concern would be what are you going to do with the water after it has cooled your tank? Most local ordinances require you to treat the water if you reinject it back into the well - even if you just use it for heat exchange...

I saw some titanium heat exchangers on ebay for moderate prices (chiller expert), or use the links in the thread for other venders to buy one. I have also researched buying my own titanium tubing and bending it, but have had no real luck in improving the overall cost.
 
Turns out there are a bunch of differant grades of titanium tubing. Does anyone have any idea which grade would be suitable for a reef?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7376678#post7376678 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cseeton
You are talking about an open loop geothermal system and they work very well. My only concern would be what are you going to do with the water after it has cooled your tank? Most local ordinances require you to treat the water if you reinject it back into the well - even if you just use it for heat exchange...

I saw some titanium heat exchangers on ebay for moderate prices (chiller expert), or use the links in the thread for other venders to buy one. I have also researched buying my own titanium tubing and bending it, but have had no real luck in improving the overall cost.
Click to expand...

cseeton. Thanks for the reply. I was going to either dump the output water into a dry well that I have for my down spouts on my house, or use it to water my garden. I guess it all depends on how much I will actually be using. The only coils that I have seen so far are in line. I was hoping to just put an exposed coil into my sump. Any thoughts on where I could find somthing like that?
 
cseeton. Just looked on Ebay. All I need is the coil that pictured. I'm going to follow up with an email to chiller expert. Maybe he can just sell me the coil? THANKS!
 
Chiller expert won't sell you just the coil. They are worried about damage in transit (?). They will sell you the heat exchanger and tell you to cut out the coil when you get it....

Honestly though, what is one more pump in your system (or a bypass). Plus, you can alway upgrade to a ground sourced heat pump (with refrigerant) later and use the same heat exchanger if you clean it properly.
 
you might be right. I could just put it inline form my return pump. Or for that matter in line on my gravity feed to my sump so that it wouldn't cause any flow restriction on the return. hmmm. ..
 
Definitely on the return piping or closed loop... you will want all the algae and other crap settling in the sump and not clogging the heat exchanger.

If it starts to clog on the return the only thing that suffers is the tank/sump flowrate. If it clogs on the gravity feed to the sump, you will pump water up and over the top of the tank because your overflow capacity diminished. Think Murphy's Laws.
 
great point. I sent an email to sw-wilson (above) asking about sizing and cost of a coil, without the inline casing, for my application. Then I wouldn't have to worry about clogging, or flow rate or any of that. Besides I have plenty of room in my sump.
 
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