According to Dan the installer, we should go live tomorrow with the basics. The geothermal should be complete, tested and cooling the main section of the house. Early next week we should finalize, with the addition of the north section of the house being attached. Before that can happen, the main unit must be up and running, then the north A/C unit and furnace can be removed and the ductwork and air returns be extended to the main handler. We also need to add on the steam humidifier and control and the reverse osmosis water unit to protect the humidifier. It's a pretty complex system here...
After all of that is done, then the compressors will be removed, and the openings from the old evaporative coolers will be closed off and secured.
After nearly 11 weeks, we are very happy to see this coming to a close!
Measuring for ductwork and air returns
The new water heater, existing softener and the hole in the floor which goes to the air returns.
The fluid pumps that move the coolant through the system.
The control panel for the zones, thermostats and motorized air dampers.
End of day today. Getting closer. Still need reverse osmosis unit and steam humidifier to be added on.
This should be the last week of the geothermal install. Today the old furnace was removed, the A/C compressor disconnected, the old water heater removed as well. New electric water heater installed and temporarily wired in so we have hot water while the project is being completed. The water softener was relocated a few feet and the platform all the equipment sat on was removed. Now everything is at ground level, elevation not needed since there is no pilot light on the water heater anymore. The main geothermal unit (Water Furnace Envision series) was placed on its stand.
Still to come: ductwork connections, thermostat replacements, connecting the well plumbing, finalizing the wiring and covering the pipes on the front of the house, removal of the second HVAC system that is still keeping the bedroom cool, and connecting the two separate systems together with ducts and motorized dampers. Should be done this week!
Before the changes. Old gas water heater on the left, water softener and furnace unit.
Disassembling the furnace.
Furnace removed, platform below going soon.
Here's what was under the platform...more old rat nests and the air return from the house.
End of day, platform gone, new electric water heater installed, geo main unit and the softener.
After two months we are finally able to use our driveway and park in the garages again. It seems like forever since we could do this and it was a big inconvenience having to park on the north end of the house and walk back across the property, over the dry creek and up to the door when we came back from grocery shopping. Don't even talk about the trek with 40 lb cases of chicken.
The town inspected the well field and gave approval. So the trenches have been filled in, the soil compacted and leveled, and gravel brought in to make everything normal again. We decided it made sense to utilize the services of the excavating company while they were here, and we had them trench the drainage culvert the remaining length of the front yard. We had them install a 12 inch culvert pipe at the point where we were parking during construction so there will be proper drainage across the entire frontage but we can still drive across and park there if needed. It also is a path to the back gate for deliveries to the back yard.
Next steps are to line the culvert with rock and to spread gravel in the orchard area we finished a month or so back. I'll post photos of the orchard and walk path project when it is completed with the gravel in a week or so.
The drainage culvert and new culvert pipe
Driveway area re-graveled
View towards the detached garage
View from the road to the house, solar trackers visible
We're on to the next step. Verde Sol-Air came to connect the tubing from each well together into one continuous loop. Each well gets tied to the next and the entire system comes into the house via the garage and attic. The tubing goes up the front wall, and is visible for now. Later a raceway will be placed on the wall and the tubes will be inside and covered, the whole thing painted to match the house. At the top there are two holes bored for the tubing to enter the attic, then the tubing goes across the attic and down through the ceiling to the location of the main unit.
Of course there were some challenges at this stage too. The holes were bored through the fascia board and on the inside of the attic it was near the corner of the building at an intersection of truss mounts. It was tough work for the installers to get the tubing to flex and go through the openings in the trusses due to the angles and very limited space to work. Add the friction factor of the tubing going through a closely fitted hole and then a sharp turn. After much tugging and pushing, it went in. Mike, the man in the attic did a great job of being the winch and wouldn't give up!
After the tubing was in place, the fittings are fused onto the tubing with a special heat tool that melts the plastic on the tube and the fitting at the same time, then the pieces are taken off the tool and pushed together. You have about 3 seconds to make the join once off the tool. Once fused, you can't tell part A from part B even if you cut them apart.
After all connections were made, a pressure gauge and air valve were attached to one end and a cap to the other. Compressed air was pumped into the line to a pressure of 100 PSI. The test calls for no change in pressure for 30 minutes. Ideally it wouldn't change at all. It's the next day and we're still at 100 PSI, so it passed.
Next step is inspection of the system by the town. Once approved, we can cover up the tubes and finally get our driveway back to normal and use our garages again for the first time since May 23. There will be a stop in progress while I am out of town for a week. I didn't want Debbie to have to deal with any issues while I was gone, so they will resume the week of 7/25.
As a side note, our attic is insulated with a deep spray foam layer and all openings are sealed. This makes the attic a "conditioned space" and the attic floor has no insulation to get in the way or to cause breathing issues. Even though the outside temps were at 90F, the attic was at 80F and not bad to work in. Prior to being insulated, the attic would reach temps of 120-130F on a day like this.
Verde Sol-Air Installer's Truck
Dan fusing fittings to the tubing where it enters the attic
The heat tool in place on the tubing and the fitting
Attic view of tubing, you can see the heavy foam insulation on the roof deck
Tubing coming down from the attic. New equipment not yet on site.
We're on to the next phase. Yesterday they trenched for the tubing connections. There are trenches around the driveway area that are about 5 feet deep and 3 feet wide. If we added water and alligators we would be just like a castle! The tubing will be joined between the wells so that it becomes one continuous loop, and then it will be brought to the front of the garage, taken up the wall and into the attic. Finally it will come down into the garage and connect to the main geothermal unit.
View from road towards house - solar field in background
Two wells and connecting trench
Main trench - you can see tubing from two of the three wells
3 wells drilled, tubing in, cement in place. Rig and equipment GONE! ↑
At long last, the three wells are done. The equipment arrived here on May 16, drilling began on May 23. The original projection was about 7 days of drilling. It took 30. Needless to say, neither the drilling company, Verde-Sol Air or the two of us was thrilled with the delay.
The issue was our soil. Most think it was because of rock, but no, it was because of sand. The soft soil kept caving in on the hole as it was drilled, and the water that is used to eject the rock dust and debris was causing erosion and caverns. They had to put nearly 80 bags of cement into the first well to stabilize it, the second was almost as bad. The third was a bit better because they stopped drilling and added cement as soon as they saw sand come out.
So now we have three holes, filled with tubing and bentonite (to lock the tubing in place and facilitate the heat transfer). Next step is to trench for the tubing to be joined together and brought over to the house. Then it will go up the wall into the attic and down into the garage, where the main unit will be. After that, the ductwork in the attic will be merged into one system (we have two separate HVAC systems now). Then the main unit will be installed and the new water heater installed.
Water heating is another benefit. A "desuperheater" takes heat from the geothermal system and preheats the water for the water heater. If additional heat is needed, then an electric heating element kicks on to heat the remainder. Currently we have a natural gas water heater, and it accounts for the bulk of our gas usage. Since we make a surplus of electricity, it makes sense to switch to electric. When the changeout is complete the only gas usage will be for clothes drying, cooking and the BBQ. Home and water heat will be geothermal.
The only downside right now is that we are in the heat of summer. When we started the project we expected to be done in May, when no A/C or heat is needed. Now we will be "offline" for a couple of days in 95-100F heat. I may have to put a portable A/C unit in the bedroom temporarily so we can sleep!
