A different way to heat and cool
Andrea Siegel has a story today about homeowners switching to geothermal heating and cooling in an effort to cut down on rapidly rising utility expenses. She follows the Borles of Pasadena as they have their system installed:
They are making a $22,000 investment in their home now. They will start to realize utility bills cut by about half. They'll recoup that upfront outlay, depending on their thermostat settings and utility rates, in 10 years at the outside, but most likely sooner. ...Come July 1, the Maryland Energy Administration maximum grant to a homeowner for installing a geothermal system will rise from $1,000 to $3,000, and jump to $10,000 for a commercial use. Officials expect the number of applications for the $591,000 cash pool that is to be shared with grants for solar-energy systems to continue to climb.
"It will go quickly," said David Cronin, MEA assistant director for renewable resources.
Reason to click the link above and read the whole story: There's a fascinating anecdote from a Middle River builder about how his clients are going geothermal once they see the numbers.
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