Geothermal systems are enjoying an increasing share of the heating and cooling market for commercial buildings. Benefits of these systems include simplified design, low maintenance expenses, and superior life-cycle costs. Inherent design and installation differences appear to separate this technology from conventional HVAC systems. As a result, some installation problems have limited the rapid adoption of ground-source technology. This paper describes representative problems encountered with commercial geothermal systems in the northeastern United States and describes some steps taken to correct these problems. Of the 23 buildings studied, 9 had problems caused by design or construction errors that were not related to geothermal technology. Poor or outdated geothermal design was the underlying cause of the difficulties in another 11, and errors in construction of the system accounted for the remaining 3. All of the problems studied would have been discovered and corrected by proper start-up and commissioning.

Units: Dual