The Real Disadvantages of Geothermal

The most common thing people search about geothermal is not how it works. It is what is wrong with it. “What are the disadvantages of geothermal.” “What is the biggest problem with geothermal.” “Why is geothermal not more common.”

Fair questions, and most of the answers online are written by people selling something or by people who have never opened one up. I have run 727 geothermal jobs and I maintain 300+ systems across Oklahoma. So here are the real disadvantages, and then the real numbers on what actually breaks.

The real disadvantages of geothermal

1. The upfront cost, and it is mostly the loop

This is the honest headline. A geothermal system costs more to put in than a conventional system, and the reason is the ground loop. You are paying for trenching or drilling and for pipe in the ground before you have any equipment at all. Everything else about geothermal is good news, and this is the thing that stops most people.

Two ways around it. A lease puts a complete system in with nothing down and the loop inside the monthly payment. Or if you already have a loop in the ground and an aging unit, a rebuild starts around $3,500 and reuses the expensive part you already bought.

2. Your yard gets torn up, once

Trenching a slinky field or drilling bores is not tidy. It grows back, and a year later you cannot tell, but on install week it looks like a construction site. People should hear that before the machines show up rather than after. A good well can take the trenching off the table entirely: farm and ranch geothermal.

3. Not every property works

You need room for a horizontal field or access for a drill rig. Rock changes the price, sometimes a lot. A tight city lot with no access is a real constraint, not a sales objection. I will tell you if your site does not suit it.

4. Finding somebody who can actually service it

This is the disadvantage nobody writes about and it is the one I would worry about most if I were buying. A geothermal system is a heat pump tied to a water loop, and plenty of good air conditioning companies have never touched the loop side. If the company that installed yours moves on, you can end up with an expensive system and nobody local who reads a flow center.

It is also why I travel most of Oklahoma for geothermal instead of just my seven counties. There are homeowners three hours away who cannot get anybody out.

5. A loop problem is a specialty repair

Loop work is not hard, but it is specific. Pressurizing, flushing, purging air, locating a leak. If nobody in your area owns a flush cart, a simple job turns into a wait.

6. Payback depends on what you are replacing

I am not going to print a payback number, because the honest answer is that it depends on what you are coming off, your electric rate, how long you stay, and how your house is built. Somebody replacing propane sees a very different number than somebody replacing a five year old heat pump. Anybody who gives you a payback figure without asking those questions is guessing.

What actually breaks, from 727 geothermal jobs

This is my own service record, not a manufacturer’s brochure. Every one of these is a real line item on a real completed job.

How long does a geothermal ground loop last?

I have never replaced one.

Better than that, I have loops in the ground right now that are on their third generation of equipment. The unit above them has been changed out twice and the pipe is still doing its job.

In 727 geothermal jobs, every single item in my records with the word “replace” on it is a loop pump, a pump o-ring, or a flow center. Not once the buried pipe. I have repaired a handful of loop leaks and located a few more, and that is it.

That makes sense when you look at what a loop is. It is fused polyethylene pipe sitting at a constant temperature underground with no sunlight, no freeze cycling and nothing moving. The parts that wear are the parts that move, and those are all indoors where I can reach them.

Can geothermal cool a house in an Oklahoma summer?

Yes, and it is better at it here than most people expect. In July your air conditioner is trying to dump heat into 100 degree air. Geothermal dumps it into ground that stays in the sixties. The hotter it gets outside, the bigger that advantage is.

Why is geothermal not more common?

Upfront cost and installer availability, in that order. It is not that the technology is unproven, it has been in Oklahoma homes for decades. It is that the loop costs money before you see any equipment, and that not enough contractors are set up to install and service it. Both of those are business problems, not engineering problems.

How do you reset a geothermal unit?

Cycle the thermostat call for a soft reset. Cutting power at the disconnect works too, but it erases the fault memory a technician needs. If a code keeps coming back, stop resetting and get it looked at. I have a full ClimateMaster fault code list with what each code means.

Common questions

What are the disadvantages of geothermal heating and cooling?

Upfront cost driven by the ground loop, yard disruption during install, site limits on some properties, and finding a contractor who can service the loop side. Payback varies by what you are replacing.

What is the biggest problem with geothermal?

From 727 of my own jobs, the biggest real problem is deferred maintenance, blocked drains and loops that were never flushed. Catastrophic failure is rare. I have replaced 13 compressors in 727 jobs.

How long does a geothermal ground loop last?

I have never replaced a loop field. Every replacement in my records is a loop pump or a fitting, not the buried pipe. I have loops still running on their third generation of equipment, meaning the unit has been changed twice and the same pipe is still in service.

How much does geothermal cost for a 2000 square foot house?

It depends on your loop, your site and the equipment, so I will not guess. Estimates on new systems are free. A rebuild of an existing geothermal system starts around $3,500, and a lease puts a complete system in with nothing upfront. The approved payment examples are in the Geothermal Comfort Plan box near the top of this page. There is an end-of-term buyout on the Geothermal Comfort Plan, so $0 upfront does not mean you own the system. Palmetto owns it during the lease, and I am an Approved Palmetto Partner.

How long does geothermal take to pay for itself?

It depends on what you are replacing, your electric rate and how long you stay. Replacing propane looks very different from replacing a newer heat pump. Anybody quoting a payback without asking those is guessing.

Is geothermal worth it in Oklahoma?

Oklahoma is a good case for it, because our summers are brutal and geothermal gets stronger the hotter it gets outside. Whether it is worth it for you comes down to your site, what you are replacing and how long you plan to stay.

Why is my geothermal not blowing cold air?

Common causes are a dirty filter, low airflow, a loop flow problem or a charge issue. Write down any fault code before you reset anything, then call 405-375-4822. A geothermal diagnostic is $348 flat.