You may be like many homeowners dreading this year’s impending heating bills. Whether you’ve got natural gas, an electric heat pump, or some ancient heating oil contraption in your basement, you’re probably painfully aware that your costs are rising and will continue to do so. According to Michael Cronin, of the Maryland Energy Administration, the average heating oil costs this winter for a Maryland homeowner will be $2,200, slightly less for natural gas, and slightly more for electric baseboards and heat pumps, because of significant electric rate increases.
It might be time to consider investing in a greener heating solution — geothermal. This technology, of drilling into the ground and piping the Earth’s natural moderately temperate air, into a superefficient system can reduce heating and cooling costs by up to 70 percent.
Of course, like most new green technologies, like solar as well, there is an upfront investment. A geothermal system costs between $15,000 to $20,000 on average, with higher costs if your home needs ductwork. (Geothermal can work with radiant heat, however, one of the benefits of a geothermal system is that it heats and cools. For cool air, a house must come equipped with air returns.)
Investing in a geothermal system can pay for itself, depending on your heating costs, in about seven years. And the average system, according to an article in “This Old House,” is blissfully low maintenance, lasting about 50 years.
“Everyone wants to be green,” said Realtor Nancy Hubble of Hubble-Bisbee Real Estate Group, Lutherville. So far the number of people converting is recent enough that they haven’t seen geothermal homes go on the market, however Hubble feels it would be a fabulous selling point if one did. “There’s a huge cost savings” in geothermal, said Hubble.
Geothermal is a good option, said Cronin, who heads up the geothermal unit of the Maryland Energy Initiative, if you’re building a new home or refinancing your current one, because you can wrap the payments into your mortgage. “The monthly energy cost savings is greater than the interest on the mortgage rate.”
Two years ago, Maryland began a grant program to assist homeowners who wanted to convert to solar and geothermal. The first year the maximum grant was $1,000. This year the maximum grant was up to $3,000 for residents and up to $10,000 for commercial properties.
The program was so popular that the state ran out of grants by July.
Cronin said not to despair, however, if you’d still like to join the program there is a waiting list and they expect more funding soon, thanks in part to the successful greenhouse gas initiatives and carbon auctions, through which Maryland recently raised $16 million for energy rate relief, energy-efficiency programs, renewable energy, and climate-change research.
The federal government also has a small incentive, a $300 tax credit for Energy Star HVAC installations. In addition check with your utility company, some progressive utilities offer low-interest loans to homeowners willing to convert to green technology.
Cronin said he expects more people to discover the advantages to geothermal heating and cooling. “People are growing more accepting of the technology.”
Which is more than they can say for their utility bills.
For more information:
- The Maryland Energy Administration http://www.energy.state.md.us/
- The Geothermal Resource Council http://www.geothermal.org/
- Energy Star — federal programs and incentives http://www.energystar.gov
