Challenge

To find an economical way to heat a 1795 farmhouse in North Dorset, Vermont. The house is insulated, though not completely, and was heated by oil fired, baseboard hot water heat, using about 1600 gallons of heating oil per year.

Solution

Replace the main heating system with a geothermal system. In order to do this the baseboard hot water system had to be replaced throughout the 2400 square foot house by a hot air system powered by a Water Furnace geothermal unit with a humidifier built right into the system.

Results

The results were remarkable! With the oil fired unit, the yearly usage of fuel oil was 1600 gallons per year @ $3.00 per gallon totaling $4800.00. Current pricing would make it closer to $6,400 a year, if we were still using it.

The electric bill previously hovered around $1,200/year. With the new unit, the monthly electric bill during the warmer months is $150.00 X 8 = $1200.00. During the colder months the bill has never been higher than $350.00 X 4 = $1400.00. The total for heating and air conditioning the house for the whole year is about $2600.00. Deducting the cost of the previous electricity expense ($1,200) from the total of $2,600 – the added electrical cost is $1,400 per year. The savings are tremendous—either $4,800 or $6,400, (depending on the price of oil)!

In addition, we now get whole house air conditioning all summer (or as we choose to use it), and constant air filtration.