Why Keeping A Geothermal Heat Pump Activated During Summer Can Be Environmentally Beneficial In Places With Long Winters

07/26/25

“Why can keeping a geothermal heat pump activated during summer be environmentally beneficial in places with long winters?”

            Keeping an AC unit activated all summer long is typically very bad for the environment. But this might not be the case for geothermal heat pump systems. Geothermal heat pumps work by siphoning heat out of buildings in the Summer and storing it in the Earth to reuse it in the winter. In places with longer and harsher winters than summers, a thermal imbalance in the Earth can develop over time. But if the heat pump is kept on all summer and the local energy grid is clean, then this will shrink the thermal imbalance and reduce the need for external heating in the winter. This is Why Keeping A Geothermal Heat Pump Activated During Summer Can Be Environmentally Beneficial In Places With Long Winter.

• Earth/Climate science
• Engineering
• Urban Systems