1. Front-End Costs vs. Payback
It’s an unavoidable fact: replacing your current HVAC system with a geothermal heating and cooling system is an expensive proposition. Up-front costs here in Olive Branch tend to run anywhere from $10,000 to $30,000 – or higher. Lot size, site accessibility, system configuration, ground conditions, and other considerations]17] have a say in it. So too does the amount of excavation that has to be done and what kind of ductwork modifications are required. And if you’re having a new home built? It’s not as budget-busting, overall, but it’ll still cost around 40 percent more than a standard-issue HVAC system will cost you.
Okay, we’ve dispensed with the bad news. Let’s turn now to the good news. To begin with, various incentives and rebates may be available at the federal, state and local level to help you bear the installation costs. Also, the energy savings possible with your new geothermal heating and cooling system will help you begin to recoup your initial investment relatively soon. So you could recoup your investment in as little as four years. But , then again: Local utility rates and the end cost of your installation may hold up full repayment for as much as 15 years. Seeing as how geothermal systems typically last for upwards of 30 or 50 years, though, you’ll still make out all right. You merely have to determine early on what your finances can weather … and how patient you are.
2. Geothermal Benefits Can Easily Outweigh Concerns About Initial Costs
Let us itemize the most consequential benefits:
- Compared to conventional heating and cooling systems, geothermal heating and cooling could lop as much as 30 to 60 percent off your heating bills. And it could minimize your cooling costs by as much as 20 to 50 percent.
- Geothermal systems use renewable energy – heat taken from the ground.
- Geothermal heat pumps don’t work by combustion, so you’re not troubled by greenhouse gas emissions (carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, etc.) and you have no fire safety or air quality concerns.
- Given that no outdoor fans or compressors are necessary, geothermal heating and cooling systems are much quieter than conventional systems.
- The absence of many complex moving parts and the fact that geothermal systems are sheltered from the elements insure many decades of low-maintenance, top-performance use. Indoor components may last about 30 years, ground loops, about 50.
Want more information on any of these issues in order to make a decision about your heating and cooling options? Speak with the Olive Branch geothermal experts at Air & Heat Service Co.. We’re eager to help, regardless of what you decide.