Frequently Asked Questions

What are the Federal Tax Benefits?
Any other tax credits or rebates?
What are the major stages of designing a geothermal system? 
How does a Geothermal system work?
What is a Manual J?

What are the Federal Tax Benefits?

Federal Income Tax Credit:

• Tax credit equal to 30% of total system cost
• No limit to the maximum credit amount for 2009 and beyond
• Can be used to offset AMT tax
• Can be used in more than one year
• Can be combined with solar and wind tax credits
• Can be combined with energy efficiency upgrade credits

Eligibility:

• Home must be located in the U.S.
• Does not have to be your main home
• Includes houses, apartments, condos, mobile homes
• Geothermal heat pump must be Energy Star qualified
• Installed between 1/1/2008 and 12/31/2016

Any other tax credits or rebates?

LIPA (Long Island Power Authority) gives rebate on a per unit installed basis.
Need to check with NY State as rebates and credits vary.

What are the major stages of designing a geothermal system?

Designing - Site plans, open versus closed loops, soil information and more.
Selecting - What to look for in geothermal equipment, including heat pumps, loop pumps, loop fluids and piping.
Sizing - Sizing requirements for heat exchangers, loop lengths and well pumps.
Installing - Techniques for installing open and closed loop systems, including pipe joining.
Operating - Get your geothermal system up and running - and keep it operating efficiently.

How does a Geothermal system work?

Geothermal heating and cooling systems use the natural constant ambient temperature of the earth to heat in the winter and cool in the summer. This is accomplished with a compressor or heat pump unit, the liquid heat exchanger medium, and the air delivery system. Quite simply, geothermal systems in heating take heat from the earth, transfer that heat to a refrigerant, then distribute the heat into the structure with a forced-air or hydronic system. In cooling, geothermal systems take heat from the structure, transfer the heat to the refrigerant, then transfer the heat back to the water or loop fluid. This works the same as a standard air conditioner, except a geothermal system uses water or loop fluid at a constant temperature (average 55 degrees) instead of varying outdoor temperature.
In other words, it’s like heating and cooling your home when it’s 55 degrees outside – all year

What is a Manual J?

A Manual J is the standard method for comprehensively calculating residential cooling loads (for each room/area) developed by the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) and the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA) based largely on the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-Conditioning Engineer's (ASHRAE) "Handbook of Fundamentals."