school energy&environment

The price and savings

Thanks to the use of technologically advanced instruments, the performance of a geothermal domestic system is very high: in the case of heating with radiation panels (the most profitable with this type of energy), savings on costs of heating are about 60% respect to traditional heating systems using methane, and can reach 80% respect to systems using oil or LPG.
To give an idea of the possible savings, it is sufficient to examine the expense of heating for one year for every m2 to be heated, from 4.6 to 7 € for a geothermal installation, from 9 to 13.7 € for a methane combustion system, and from 14 to 21.7 € for a LPG system.
In the production of warm water, there is a saving of about 30% in winter, while in summer the production is free, because the water is heated (to about 60 – 70°C) using the heat taken from the air for the air-conditioning.
For a home of 100 m2, the cost of the installation is about 10,000 – 25,000 €, depending on the geological conditions and the type of system (vertical probes are more expensive), therefore similar to a traditional oil, methane or LPG system for the same amount of radiant surface installed. The heat pump costs little more than a good heating system boiler, and the higher price is for building he distribution system (which is necessary for every form of heating, whatever the source of energy may be).
In about five years, energy savings are able to cover the initial expense. In addition, incentives are foreseen until 2010, which consist in a tax relief of 55% on the total cost, for the substitution of winter heating systems with high efficiency heat pumps and low enthalpy geothermal systems.
Since, for the best performance the heating distribution system must be of the type with radiation panels, if the house does not already have this type of radiators, it is not convenient to substitute the traditional systems, however it is certainly convenient to choose this type of a heating/conditioning system when designing new buildings.