Shopsmith Forums

@ Ed in Tampa, on This Old House they have put some Geothermals in but never said what the pay back time was for the expense over conventional. I like the technology of it, but payback if done by a commercial out fit must be a decade or so. I compare that to a tankless water heater, initial cost is more, has to be flushed and cleaned ever year, or should be, higher BTUs used than a heated tank, at firing time time, and during usage, ect.

Ed in Tampa wrote:Why not use an air conditioner or a Geothermic heat pump?

I can't get natural gas where I live, and propane was recently sky-high .. about the same as electric resistance heating. So a couple of years ago, I got a quote on a geothermal system from a reputable company. The system cost was upwards of $20 grand, even after tax credits. Not counting dealing with the mess it would have made of my yard.

The company estimated a payback period of about 6 years. But I had good records of my historical energy usage, and they had overestimated my heating needs considerably. The actual payback period would have been about ten years.

The good news is that the natural gas company now seems serious about running lines into my area. And that's only about a third the cost of the alternatives.

dusty wrote:When the humidity is up, swamp coolers are a waste. Just sit in front of a fan. I base my comment on summers in Mississippi for four years. Dallas Texas wasn't much better. Arizona, during monsoon season, is just as bad.

Dusty, your results fall pretty much in line with the map in Everett's first post. Mississippi and Dallas, Texas are both in Area C, not recommended for swamp coolers. Arizona may be better in season.

ERLover wrote:Thanks Tom, for the you tube I am now an expert on Swamp Coolers.

You are welcome ER. You won't find swamp coolers in St Paul or Germantown. Anything you want to know there is fact or fiction to be found on youtube!

All I know is moms/dads house was built in 1966, about a 3K sq ft ranch, original windows and doors, in the shade most of the time, attached garage on the north side, garage has insulated walls and ceiling, not open rafters, with insulation but does get the sun in summer around 2-3pm till about 6pm.
It has been 90* here the past few days, at about 10pm I turn the central AC to 68*, when I get up around 7-8ish am, turn it up to 74*, it does not kick back on till about 3-4pm.