Geothermal heating and cooling at The Hermitage
Residential property developer Sekisui House has introduced geothermal heating and cooling infrastructure into its 300 ha master-planned community, The Hermitage, in Sydney’s south-west. Sekisui House will be the first developer to bring geothermal technology to the housing market in NSW, having already installed it at its Ecco Ripley development in Ipswich, Queensland.
The developer partnered with Brisbane-based QPS Geothermal to implement the geothermal system at The Hermitage. QPS Geothermal Director Mark Langdon explained that it is a simple process by which a geothermal ground loop is installed into the ground at depths of about 80 m and the constant temperature of the Earth is used to cool or absorb the heat. The company’s GeoAir system reduces the typical effort and energy load of conventional systems required to reach a similar temperature within the home.
“The system distributes refrigerants into closed ground loops where excess heat is naturally absorbed by the much cooler subsurface temperature,” Langdon said. “With the heat taken out, the refrigerant condenses into a liquid and is returned to the internal fan coil to cool the space. Alternatively, in winter, the refrigerant is circulated through the geothermal ground loops and absorbs the heat from the ground. The resulting hot vapour is circulated through the internal fan coil to heat the space.”
Langdon said the geothermal technology will offer home owners a minimum of 60% savings on their electricity bills - up to 70% or 80% in more extreme weather. He added that the heat pump operates very quietly at around 51 decibels.
Sekisui House’s corporate global philosophy is to research and incorporate the most efficient and intelligent technologies available in sustainable development. Sekisui House Project Director Craig D’Costa noted, “When we looked at the cost savings and the environmental benefits GeoAir offered, we were confident that this technology would be welcomed by our existing residents and residents to be.”
The Hermitage is currently trialling the GeoAir system with a view to making it available to all new homes.
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