Geothermal energy is gaining ground
May 2024
A geothermal heat pump delivers between 400% and 600% efficiency.
by Will Lange, Contributing Columnist
Have you heard the new catchphrase “electrification”?
While you may not have heard about it outside of the transportation industry, electrification is a rising megatrend across the United States. It means using the low-cost and plentiful electricity we have on hand to power systems that traditionally run on fossil fuels. In your home, that would boil down to cooking and heating. Because our electrical grid is rapidly growing in efficiency and decreasing dependence on the dirtiest fuels, this makes sense.
But like most great ideas, this one isn’t new. Sixty years ago, all-electric homes were promoted to grow a new electrical infrastructure. Today, the concept works to stabilize the existing electrical infrastructure and take advantage of more efficient electrical technology.
Your local electric cooperative can make and deliver electricity for cooking and heating that is cleaner and more reliable than the best in-home fuel-burning systems. As a member of an electric cooperative you own a part of your nonprofit electric company, while your fossil fuel provider is strictly in business to make a profit.
Here are two great examples of why it makes sense to go all-electric:
An electric induction stove delivers about 85% of the energy it uses to your food.
An electric induction stove delivers about 85% of the energy it uses to your food. A gas stove only gets 15% of the energy consumed into your food. If you’ve cooked over a gas stove in July, you know this firsthand. Induction cooktops look similar to standard glass-top electric cooktops, but instead of heating an entire stovetop burner, copper coils under the burner’s surface create electromagnetic waves that heat only the surface area of the pot being used.
Heating and cooling your home with a geothermal heat pump delivers between 400% and 600% efficiency. (Most of that energy comes from the ground.) As a bonus, most of these “geo” systems also deliver “free hot water” for storage in your water heater.
For more information, visit electric.coop or geoexchange.org.