The Land Conservancy of N.J.: Geothermal Drilling Is Complete

The second step in the installation of our new geothermal heating and cooling system, drilling and assembling the well, has been completed here at the Land Conservancy of New Jersey. Drilling and installing the well took approximately a week to complete. This innovative system is a 5-ton single loop well which utilizes the extraction/return method of groundwater to heat and cool our office. The geothermal well was drilled 580 feet below ground surface, while the piping was only installed to a depth of 577 feet due to sludge accumulating at the very bottom of the well, where it will pump groundwater from several water-bearing fractures, including a large one near the very bottom of the well which yielded a flow of water at 35 gallons/ minute. The water table in the well was very deep at 80 feet below ground surface. A pump was placed 100 feet down in the well where it will pump water into the building through black plastic piping (see photo). Water will be piped into the building at 7 gallons/minute and will go through the heat exchanging water furnace which cools or heats the water to the preferred temperature and circulates the air around the building. After the water is used it will be pumped back down to the bottom of the well via a separate pipe to a depth of 577 feet below ground where it is re-circulated. It was a noisy week here at the office, but thanks to contractor, Don Colaluce and his son, Jason, the drilling has been a success and is an important step in our continual effort to make our Wildacres headquarters more energy efficient and sustainable. See the pictures below and check back to read about the next step in geothermal installation at our office-- installing the heating and cooling equipment and balancing the ductwork throughout the building.