Geothermal Heat Exchanger? 1

[propellerhead]

I want to use my 30 gal/min flowing well for an open loop geothermal system but my township has an ordinance against open loop systems with no appeal process. The well currently flows into a 90 gal tank and then overflows down to a creek. Would it be practical to build a heat exchanger that I could put in a tank and thereby have a closed loop for the township but still use my well? The heat exchanger would have 30 gallons of 53 deg. F. relatively low mineral content water flowing across it by gravity per minute. I have no room for a pond or horizontal loop field. A local contractor sized the house for a 5 ton Waterfurnace NDV064A with an open loop system but that's not an option now.

 

[carnage1]

you should be able to slip a downwell heat exchanger in and still have room for the pump to use the water, the only drawback is your water from the well will be a little warmer.

Luck is a difficult thing to verify and therefore should be tested often. - Me

 

[propellerhead]

Thanks for the info. That appears to be a real possibility. I've looked at some info about downwell heat exchangers and they look like they do in principle the same thing that I want to do. All of the info that I've found so far deals with using underground aquafers that operate at considerably higher temps than I'd be dealing with. I'm just trying to figure out how big something like that would have to be to see if it's practical. There looks like there may be information that will allow me to atleast roughly calculate how much pipe would be needed. I'll see if I can figure that out. Thanks again for the idea.