County digs second geothermal well for school
North Frederick Elementary School is currently in the process of getting a geothermal heating and cooling system installed. The Frederick News Post reported that digging is underway for the second well. The project is intended to help cut energy costs associated with running the school and help the county school system achieve greater sustainability.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the nation’s 17,450 K-12 school districts spend more than $6 billion a year on energy. This sum of money is greater than what is spent on computers and textbooks each year. By investing in a geothermal heating and cooling system, the Frederick school district is hoping to cut energy costs and spend the energy savings on additional educational programs and materials.
Construction on the new well for the geothermal system is expected to be finished by the time school opens in August 2014, according to Ray Barnes, facilities services director at Frederick County Public Schools, reported the news source. The wells will be located underneath the new parking lots being installed – hiding invisible to the naked eye and not impacting the scenery. Yet the result of the geothermal system will be tremendous as the annual savings add up.
Additional planning will be required for using the new system, but officials are not concerned.
“Geothermal wells replace the traditional boiler and air conditioning chillers that large buildings typically use to heat and cool,” Barnes told the news source. “With a geothermal system, you have to do a bit more planning because you’re not able to modify the temperature in the building as quickly. They’re easier to operate because you don’t have a lot of heavy equipment that you have to perform preventive maintenance on.”
With the new system, one year of heating and cooling the 93,600-square foot North Frederick Elementary will cost the county about $113,256. This means the cost to heat one square foot of the school dropped from $1.81 to $1.21, reported the Frederick News Post.
So far, officials are pleased with what one geothermal wall has accomplished and are excited for the prospects of two. Administrative staff are in the process of getting used to the new operational system, which does require a bit more planning than a regular boiler, but it has been a smooth transition.
Teachers are also excited about the prospect of the more environmental solution and pleased with how the transition to a geothermal system has occurred, according to the news source.
“I don’t notice much difference,” Sarah Hubbard, a fourth-grade teacher at Lincoln, told the news source. “Everything is pretty normal. … Before we opened, we went through and (administrators) talked to us about ‘green’ features.”
As more and more schools look to decrease energy costs, geothermal heating and cooling systems will become more popular. Already many schools are making the transition to the energy-efficient technology.
Tags: Space Conditioning, Water Heating