How can geothermal heat pumps use warmth from underground to cool a home?

If these pumps use underground warmth, how can it be used for cooling a building in the summer?

Geothermal heat pumps are very trendy right now, using warmth from just under the surface of the earth to help keep a home or business at a comfortable temperature.

The popularity is further driven by decarbonization

The technology from geothermal heat pumps makes it possible to replace appliances that are powered by fossil fuel, keeping a home or business comfortable in both the summer and the winter.

That said, what many people find confusing is how a technology focused on using warmth from the ground is also able to keep a building cool.

The key is in knowing that there are several different types of geothermal heat pumps.  The type best known for working both as a furnace is the air-source form.  At the most oversimplified level, they function somewhat as a complete opposite of an air conditioner.  They are considered to be ideal for the replacement of an oil furnace.

On the other hand, geothermal heat pumps are quite different

Not only are these units more expensive to install than the air-source type of technology, but they also function quite differently and more efficiently.

To understand how a warmth-based technology can both warm and cool a building involves understanding of how it works.

Fortunately, the basic technology behind a geothermal heat pump is relatively straightforward.  It is a type of appliance that circulates a form of refrigerant (such as water) through pipes that are sent down into the ground and then up throughout the building. The water absorbs energy from one place and releases it into another. Therefore, when the goal is to warm the building, it uses the energy from under the surface to warm the refrigerant and deliver it to the building.  On the other hand, when it’s already hot in the building, the system is used in the other direction, absorbing the warmth from the building and sending it under the surface.

Consistency is key

Geothermal heat pumps use the consistent temperature found a few feet underground, below a building, to help to produce more favorable indoor temperatures.