Summer Construction Update - Geothermal Power
There has been significant construction on the Eaglebrook School campus for the last three summers, all in preparation for the construction of the art, science, and music wing of the Edward P. Evans Academic Center. The Groundbreaking ceremony for this project was held on Friday, May 1, and major site work began soon after. Before the structure of the building is begun, the geothermal wells that will be used to heat and cool this new building have to be dug. Eaglebrook’s commitment to sustainability is strong, which is why the school chose to use geothermal energy in the new building. Two summers ago, geothermal wells were dug underneath the Baines parking lot, and they are used in the current Learning Center and Baines Hall. The wells this summer are currently being dug at the rate of about 1 well per day, and nineteen of the thirty-two wells have been drilled so far. They are dug to a depth of 500’.
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Don’t understand how the wells are used to heat and cool buildings? Eaglebrook Project Manager Wes Smith explained how they work, “After the wells are drilled a series of pipe is run up and down the well and contains a heat transfer fluid which generally stays the same temperature as the earth, about 52 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat pumps will eventually be placed in the building which will extract heat from, or pump it into the earth through the closed loop of pipe that runs through the wells. After circulating through the piping loop, the fluid is piped into the building where it is connected to a heat exchanger. In the colder months the fluid in the pipes absorbs the heat in the earth and distributes it to the building. In the summer the fluid absorbs heat from the building and returns it to the earth. Basically, the geothermal system will use the ambient temperature of the earth’s crust as a heat source in the winter, and as a heat sink in the summer which replaces the need to burn fossil fuels and/or the use of electrical elements.” See photos of the wells being dug here.
The Edward P. Evans Academic Center will open in September 2016. Learn more about the project at www.eaglebrook.org/construction.
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271 Pine Nook Road | P. O. Box 7 | Deerfield, MA 01342 | 413-774-7411
