Residents Spend To Save On Energy
April 20, 2009 by Josh Morgan
From the road, it looked as if the Date family was constructing a moat around their house on April 9.
But, there was no water or a drawbridge as the four-foot deep trench that ran from the garage to the front the door was more than it appeared. Workers were digging the trench as they installed a geothermal system that will now serve to heat and cool the home.
For Ravi and Kimberly Date, installing the geothermal heat pump system into their Cheshire home was a year in the making. After oil prices skyrocketed last summer, Kimberly Date said “we starting looking into different ways to heat our home.”
“The geothermal will take care of most of the heating and air conditioning,” Date said. “We will still have the furnace in case we need it, but for the most part, the geothermal will be working.”
After doing 12 months of research, Date said the geothermal system was the best fit for the family. She said installing solar panels was an option, but it wouldn’t take care of the heating needs. However, she said putting solar panels on the roof could occur “in the future” to help offset electricity costs, as the family moves in the direction of alternative energy sources.
The geothermal system ranges from $20,000 to $60,000, depending on the work that needs to be done. If the air ducts are already installed, there are some cost savings but, if a person wants to install ultra violet lights to clean the air, there are additional charges. Date estimated the payback period of the system to be around seven years, but if oil prices go through the roof again, “it could be paid back even sooner.”
Smart Energy, Inc. from New Rochelle, N.Y. handled the work on the outside of the house, while Master Mechanical, LLC from Waterbury took care of wiring on the home’s inside. Dominic Izzi from Master Mechanical explained the geothermal heat pump was a reverse system that would handle both heating and cooling needs. A total of six holes were dug 100 feet into the ground at 30-degree angles to reach the prime spot in the earth’s crust. The piping then leaves the ground and connects to another series of pipes that are positioned 18 inches below the frost line.
When the house is being heated, it takes warm air from 100 feet inside the earth, where Izzi said the temperature remains at 54 degrees. When the house is being air conditioned, it removes the warm air from the house, “discharging it into the ground.” That excess energy is then used to heat the home’s hot water.
“They should see a 40 to 60 percent reduction in their heating and cooling bills,” Izzi estimated.
A switch to new forms of energy is nothing new for some residents of Cheshire, like Vincent Tranquilli, who lives on Oak Avenue and has two mid-sized solar panels stationed directly on his roof facing the sun. The panels were bought nearly 20 years ago, Tranquilli stated, when the government was handing out incentives for such energy-efficient purchases.
“I’m not in the most conducive area for solar panels but, when we get sun, they work just fine,” said Tranquilli. “In the spring and fall we seem to get the most production. In the summer, when the days are longer, they work well, but there are so many leaves on the trees it can limit their efficiency.”
While he has never done a direct assessment of how much the panels save him throughout the year, Tranquilli did state that he has seen a difference through the years, in his bills, as opposed to others who rely more on oil.
“My bills don’t seem to fluctuate as much as others,” said Tranquilli. “I would definitely recommend purchasing the panels to anyone out there.”
But, solar panels are not the only cost-saving measures Tranquilli has taken over the last several years. To make sure that his house is as energy efficient as possible, he has improved the insulation in every area of his home, purchasing pressurized doors, buying covers for all outlets and personally building a doorframe leading to the attic that allows very little heat to escape.
All of these measures have cost Tranquilli money, he says, but they are worth it in order to save on yearly costs.
“I really do subscribe to the idea that you have to spend money in that area in order to save money,” said Tranquilli. “It definitely makes a big difference.”
For geothermal units, Izzi said he wouldn’t advise residents in their first home or a “fixer upper” to consider adding an expensive heat pump. He said he would only recommend the system to anyone who feels they are in their “dream home,” as the payback takes a number of years and requires a hefty upfront cost.
Date said she “liked the idea of being green,” but said she didn’t expect to have the system installed so soon. The family is in line to receive a 30 percent tax credit on the costs in next year’s tax filings, as part of President Barack Obama’s stimulus plan and initiative to support alternative energy sources.
“With Obama being elected, it was great timing for us,” Date said. “I think this is a great thing for people to do.”