Brenda Marks, Special to the Register
03/11/2007
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The way Roger Tarika views things, energy prices are only going to head up.
With those costs rising, it seemed obvious to him to examine his options when it came to building a new house in Fairfield and deciding how to heat it in winter and cool it during the hot summer months, he said.
Tarika, 50, and his wife, Bevo Tarika, took the advice of their contractor and leaned "green." They shunned traditional types of heating systems that use oil and gas and electricity, and instead opted for geothermal.

"It will pay for itself eventually and ecologically it is good for the environment. That’s a compelling enough reason for anyone," Tarika said of the system that uses wells drilled in the ground and loops of coils inside of them to keep a glycol solution circulating to heat and cool a building without hurting the environment.

Although the initial outlay for drilling the wells can be pricey, geothermal heating and cooling can pay for itself by slashing heating and cooling expenses over the long haul, said Anthony Ganio, vice president of operations for Connecticut Wells Inc. The company is based in Bethlehem, but does work throughout Connecticut and nearby states.

Installing the outdoor portion of the system can run anywhere from $9,000 to $13,000 and up, depending on how deep the wells are drilled and how many are installed. The interior portion costs 15 percent more than traditional fossil fuel heating systems, he said.

The company, which previously mainly drilled water wells, got into the geothermal business in the 1990s. Initially there wasn’t a big demand as fuel prices weren’t too high, Ganio said. But once fuel prices started rising around 2000, the company, which employs 14 people, saw demand start increasing. Now, geothermal work is 90 percent of the company’s business.

"We just did our scheduling and we’re booked through the second week of May with geothermal," Ganio said.

Ganio lists places where the company has worked on geothermal systems: the Bronx Zoo, the Harrington School in Massachusetts, the Mohegan Sun’s day care center. He estimates Connecticut Wells has done at least 300 homes in Connecticut. Out of state, the business did singer Bette Midler’s home in New York, The U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., and historic Front Street in lower Manhattan.

Money back

A system typically pays for itself in about seven years, Ganio said. Connecticut Wells drills the wells and does the outside work. An HVAC company then installs the heating and cooling portion inside the home or business.

Geothermal systems work by collecting heat from under the ground in winter through a series of pipes, called a loop, installed below the surface. Fluid circulating in the loop carries this heat to the home, and an indoor system uses compressors and heat exchangers to concentrate the energy and release it inside the home at a higher temperature, usually through duct fans.

In the summer, the process is reversed: Excess heat is drawn from the home, expelled to the loop, and absorbed by the Earth.

Older homes may be retrofitted if there is space in the attic or basement, said Frankie Popilowski, who works in sales and marketing for New Milford-based Seguin Heating and Air Conditioning. Seguin is putting in Tarika’s system inside the house.

Tarika’s system, which is being installed in a three-story home, is using nine wells, more than double that of an average-sized home. Tarika declined to say what the square footage of his house measures.

Tarika, who used to work on Wall Street and is now a real estate developer, acknowledges that his system will cost at least double what a typical one would run. Average homes use a three-well system with each well measuring about 350 feet, Ganio said.

"I did it for the long-term economic reward and for the ecological aspect of it," Tarika said.

Motives vary

Tarika first learned about geothermal when touring a house built by his contractor, Kais Custom Builders in Norwalk.

Scott Havelock, Kais’ vice president, said his company typically builds homes that are between 7,500 and 14,000 square feet in size. With homes that size, Havelock said, the break-even point is 12 years to 15 years.

Putting in a geothermal system is clearly owner-driven, Havelock said.

"We have to understand the philosophy of the owner," he said. "We make them aware it’s an option. Some owners have a desire to reduce their dependency on fossil fuel. Some want a ‘green’ house and this is a way to achieve that. It’s more money...but operationally their fuel bill is lower."

Popilowski, of Seguin, said as gas and oil prices continue to rise, geothermal is becoming more popular.

"People realize there is a better way and a lot want to go ‘green,’" she said. Her company’s business has jumped to about 80 percent geothermal. They are certified geothermal installers through the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association, an Oklahoma-based industry trade group.

"You really have to look at it as an investment," she said. "For every dollar you put in you get about $4 of heating or cooling back. It’s a lot of things to weigh."
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Brenda Marks is a Waterbury-based freelance writer.