Is this free energy ?

**confus-ed** · November 30th, 2005, 02:59 PM

Ok so I've been looking at geothermal energy systems a bit like this , so if I'm following this bit :-

.. a ground-source heat pump is 300% to 400% efficient ..

Then once I've paid out for installation, every £ at todays prices I put in I'll get at least £3 worth of free ? & all I need is space to drill or dig a hole ?

Estimates on pay back for install cost seem to range from 10-20 years .

& thinking on a commercial scale, there must be a way to generate electricity from this ground heated energy ?

Or have I been hoodwinked by Green propaganda ?

**Richard1** · November 30th, 2005, 03:18 PM

I don't have problem with Nuclear energy but if we are going to use it we really need to focus on better disposal procedures.

Geothermal energy would be great to but can that be done anywhere? Where I live you can't dig down more than 5 feet without hitting water.

**confus-ed** · November 30th, 2005, 03:39 PM

That link says 150ft deep - but I've seen trench systems shown in as little as 6ft, on some installers sites - it depends on the local gound temperatures I think .. so I'm guessing it'll be feasable most places with houses, except maybe for the guys who post from alaska

!

**geoscomp** · November 30th, 2005, 03:49 PM

we have a number of those around here and the initial cost is the biggest obstacle..in areas where there is a lot of groundwater they are not quite as efficient, but they do work

**houseisland** · November 30th, 2005, 03:54 PM

Too bad you don't live Iceland.

http://www.energy.rochester.edu/is/reyk/

**geoscomp** · November 30th, 2005, 03:56 PM

yeah..not as bad here as there, but the lowest here in winter is 45 below with an average of 3-4 ft of snow..

**xpuser357** · November 30th, 2005, 09:07 PM

You folks that have Heatpumps air to air, Have defrost cycles, and when you are defrosting ,your electric strips are on. Also when the temp outside is 10
degrees your air to air heatpump is struggling to heat your house and
depending how many banks of electric strips you got will help heat. They
say there is heat until the temp reaches -460 degrees. With the above
explanation about air to air. Geothermal DO NOT HAVE DEFROST cycles.
they do not need large banks of electric strips. Below frost line and where
heat can conduct. Water is great heat conducter with a closed loop
system. When you talk refrigeration That is what I do. N.A.T.E certified

**slgrieb** · December 1st, 2005, 05:21 PM

No, this is free energy. What a mistake to try to reduce rather than harness it.
http://agnews.tamu.edu/stories/ANSC/methane.htm

**confus-ed** · December 2nd, 2005, 04:58 AM

Go on then, I'll agree that's free but wasted energy

However now we want ... practical notions for catching cow farts please !

**Potato Salad** · December 2nd, 2005, 09:31 PM

Its a great idea but they need to learn to harness it better an dmake it available to all without loss of productivity.

**slgrieb** · December 2nd, 2005, 09:54 PM

Uh, this is a bit of a joke. There really are efforts to recover and use methane emissions from livestock feces as fuel, but I think efforts to utilize bovine flatulence as an energy source may just be dreams blowing in the wind. To date the most successful effort has been in the Good Old U. S. of A. We call it the Federal Government, and everybody knows how that works!

Still, I think -ed is right! We need a thread on practical recovery methods for LiMES (Livestock Methane Emissions)! Heck, Bill Gates made a fortune by selling an operating system he didn't even own to IBM! Can we do worse? I smell change in the air.

**confus-ed** · December 3rd, 2005, 05:48 AM

Originally Posted by slgrieb

.. I smell change in the air.

With all those cow farts still on the loose, I'm not surprised !

So I guess that now requires a public service broadcast from the folks in Wisconsin

('Ed's summary of the method: - collect all the pooh in a tank, & then use a fart powered generator to make electricity !

)

Now if you could train cows to use a toilet, this'd get much more efficient !

**slgrieb** · December 5th, 2005, 06:43 PM

Excellent -ed! I think you are really onto something here! Once in a while it really helps to think outside the corral. The process of methane recovery from the solid wastes isn't so hard, but energy recovery from Bovine Flatulence has been the real challenge. I think the turbine idea shows real promise.

I have a vision of a tube attached by straps to the relevant portion of the cow's anatomy. Solid matter and gas would both spin a turbine which would in turn charge a battery. Perhaps a series of baffles downstream from the turbine could slow passage of emissions long enough for vents to direct the methane into something like a balloon where the gas could be collected for burning. Should work equally well for sheep, but goats would likely eat the lot.

"Who are you who are so wise in the ways of science?"

**street1** · December 5th, 2005, 09:21 PM

I remember when a light switch had a sign"turn off when not in use.Toyotas new gas powered electric car gets 60mpg.If you use A/C or Defrost it gets 22mpg.I guess it would be amazing in about 1% of the earth.Hybris are great!!!