Nelson Mechanical Design (NMD), an Island-based “green” contractor, is at work this week on the installation of six GeoBalls, the first on Martha’s Vineyard, at the home of Libby and David Fielder in West Tisbury. The latest innovation in geothermal installations, each GeoBall consists of a rolled-up “GeoSlinky,” which is 1,000 feet of three-quarters-inch plastic tubing configured into overlapping circular loops.
Geothermal systems use the tubing in a closed-loop underground system. A fluid in the tubing absorbs heat from the ground and sends it to a heat pump inside a building.
The advantage of the GeoBalls is they require less space, ensure uniform heat transfer between each of the loops, and reduce excavation and landscaping costs, according to NMD’s press release.
Manufactured by Eagle Mountain in Bristol, N.Y., a GeoBall is shipped in its spherical form and unrolled on a site into a 140-foot trench that is three feet wide by six feet deep. When used in a horizontal geothermal field, a GeoBall reduces excavation costs by up to 30 percent compared with a conventional geothermal field, according to NMD.
Call 508-696-3120 or go online to www.nmdgreen.com for more information.
