Clean Energy Resource Teams

Geothermal heat pumps are one of the most efficient ways to heat and cool a home and provide hot water.
More and more homeowners are discovering the benefits of these systems, which tap the relatively constant temperature of the Earth a few feet underground, for both new homes and retrofits in existing houses.

General Information

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Minnesota Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP) FAQ – MN Office of Energy Security
This piece is designed to be an overview and is based, in part, on the recently completed study by Michaels Engineering at the behest of the Minnesota Department of Commerce. This document represents the best overall general information available, to date. Although it should not be used in isolation as a basis for a decision about any individual installation, it can provide a starting place for those considering ground source heat pumps in Minnesota.

Geothermal FAQ – CERTs

Geothermal Basics – US DOE EERE
EERE reviews geothermal basics beyond heat pumps, provides links to geothermal resource maps and contains a geothermal glossary. The site also contains links to other organizations working on Geothermal Energy, good education links and good pictures.

Ground Source Heat Pumps Basics – Minnesota Department of Commerce

Geothermal Education Office
In particular, look at their “More Hot Websites” link that links you to dozens of “hot” geothermal websites.

GeoExchange – The Geothermal Heat Pump Consortium
GHPC is both a public and member-based organization that has all sort of press releases for different audiences, neat little factoids, interesting facts, videos, case studies, fact sheets, etc. A CERTs membership is in the works so we can access all the inside information.

Development Resources

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International Ground Source Heat Pump Association
IGSHPA offers good descriptions of how heat pumps work, a great Frequently Asked Questions page, and even an educational coloring book for kids, among other things.

GeoThermal – Alliant Energy
Alliant Energy has a great page about “working with it” that’s designed for contractors, engineers, and building managers that talks all about how to design, size, install and operate a system. It could be a very informative link for contractors. In addition, the site offers some good case studies (residences, commercial facilities, and schools and churches).

Earth Energy Society of Canada
Great resources including basics, links, and a Frequently Asked Questions page.

Publications

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Economic Analysis of MN Geothermal Heat Pumps – MN DOC & Michaels Engineering
The 2007 Legislature appropriated $50,000 to the Office of Energy Security to provide for a comprehensive technical, economic and environmental analysis of geothermal heat pump systems in comparison with conventional HVAC systems in Minnesota residential, commercial, and institutional buildings. The analysis used representative rated capacity and performance of equipment to identify general trends in system applications. In general, the most important factor for considering the cost-effectiveness of a geothermal heat pump (GHP) system for cooling and heating is the availability of a lower-cost alternative. Given that energy performance of heating and cooling systems in buildings and resultant emissions are highly dependent on the assumptions used, caution is urged in applying results to performance of an individual system.
Read the report for complete details.

Case Studies

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CERTs Geothermal Case Studies