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Ortman Drilling will determine the most cost effective approach to drilling the boreholes for your geothermal heating and cooling system. Taking into account soil conditions, topography, available sources of water, and system requirements, Ortman Drilling will design a system that works most effectively for your home or business.
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Vertical Closed Loop Systems
Ortman Drilling multi-million dollar investment in drilling rigs gives it the capability to bore a wide variety of vertical holes to specific depths up to 600 feet or greater, with multiple diameter boreholes. With seven state-of-the-art rigs available and 16 certified drillers on staff, projects can be completed in a timely fashion regardless of the project's size.
Our experienced drillers install all piping and grouting materials per engineered specifications. In addition, Ortman Drilling has conductivity testing capabilities to ensure a solid thermal connection prior to the completion of the job.
Horizontal Closed Loop Systems
For horizontal closed loop systems, Ortman Drilling has equipment to do directional drilling and excavation equipment for trenching. A horizontal closed loop field is composed of pipes that run horizontally in the ground. A long horizontal trench, deeper than the frost line, is dug and multiple U-shaped or "slinky coils" are placed horizontally inside the trench. Excavation costs for horizontal loop fields are about half the cost of vertical drilling, so this is the most common layout used wherever there is adequate land available.
As an alternative to trenching, the horizontal loop field may be laid by horizontal directional drilling. This technique can lay piping under yards, driveways or other structures without disturbing them, with a cost between those of trenching and vertical drilling.
Vertical Open Loop Systems
Ortman Drilling installs open loop geothermal systems that pull natural water from a well or body of water into a heat exchanger located inside the heat pump. In this system heat is either extracted or added by the primary refrigerant loop, and the water is returned to a separate injection well, irrigation trench, tile field or other body of water. Since the water chemistry is not controlled, the appliance may need to be protected from corrosion by using alternative metals in the heat exchanger and pump. If the water contains high levels of salt, minerals or hydrogen sulfide, a closed loop system is usually preferable.
