New condos promise warm, green winters

Construction has begun on a 66-unit condominium complex in East Bridgewater that will come fitted with cutting-edge "geothermal" systems for heating and air conditioning guaranteed to save the condo owners big bucks while preserving the environment.

Richard Lincoln , the developer of Wayside Farm off Route 18 , said the units may cost about $10,000 more to build than traditionally equipped condos. But that up-front investment will net the homeowners a savings of 50 percent or more annually over the cost of traditional fossil fuels.

According to Lincoln, an owner can expect to get a year's worth of heating and cooling for $500 or less. And that's for units as large as 2,000 square feet. The increasingly popular systems will also eliminate the pollutants associated with fossil fuel methods, he said.

The geothermal energy system, which is more frequently used in schools and commercial buildings , transfers heat stored in the soil and groundwater into the home through a system of water-filled pipes energized by an electric heat pump. The water will be supplied from wells drilled about 300 feet below the homes. The heat is channeled up from the ground in the winter, and heat from the home is channeled down into the ground in the summer.

The cooling system is similar to that of a refrigerator, in which warm air inside the box is transferred to the coils to dissipate. The same air ducts are used for heating and cooling.

Lincoln said Wayside Farm, which will consist of 44 single homes and 22 duplexes , will be one of the first residential complexes in Southeastern Massachusetts to use the geothermal energy system.

"I think it's largely a cost issue" for developers, he said. "And it's a little outside the box."

He said the recent rapid climb in energy costs prompted him, as president of Orchard Knoll LLC , to look at alternative systems.

"It's certainly been used in homes, but around here, it's mostly in businesses and schools," he said of the geothermal equipment.

Examples of its use include Trinity Church in Boston , Murphy School in Dorchester , Hastings School in Westborough, and Haverhill's public library . Harvard University recently installed geothermal energy systems in four of its new buildings.

"We won't make any more money" on the units, "but we felt we wanted to do something a little more progressive, given the weakness of the real estate market," Lincoln said.

Wayside Farm's condominiums will earn the "Energy Star" rating, meaning they meet energy efficiency guidelines set by the federal Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy . Engineers at the Conservation Services Group in Westborough , who specialize in conservation and renewable energy, helped design a system for Lincoln that would meet Energy Star benchmarks. The utility companies pick up the cost of their services.

David Ruggiero , a technical support specialist for Conservation Services, said his firm provided Lincoln with guidance on the heating and cooling units as well as on accompanying insulation that will ensure the systems operate at top efficiency. As an Energy Star developer, Lincoln will qualify for certain incentives paid by the utility companies to builders who construct energy-efficient homes, Ruggiero said. But the homeowners themselves will reap the biggest reward in yearly energy savings.

Lincoln said he may have to educate buyers on his company's system.

"Some people might be suspicious," he said. "The challenge for us is to convince them the system is not complicated at all. This is just a pipe down a hole."

The system can be serviced by the usual heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning [HVAC] providers.

Carl Orio , president of Water Energy Distributors Inc. , a New Hampshire firm that has distributed heat pumps and designed heating systems for about 32 years, said the number of homeowners interested in installing geothermal systems has recently soared.

"It has probably easily doubled just in the last 12 months," Orio said.

It is generally the single homeowner, either building or retrofitting an existing home, who has shown interest, rather than developers of subdivisions, he said. He said his company has worked with several developers, however.

"The oldest residential development we had was in Shrewsbury in 1981," he recalled. That was for about 40 homes.

Wayside Farm condos will be priced at $379,000 for a unit in the duplexes and $409,000 for the single-family houses. Lincoln said the first should be finished by December. He predicts a three-year build-out.

According to Ruggiero, Energy Star homes have the added benefit of being easier to sell.

"And real estate brokers across the country are finding Energy Star houses are retaining their values better," he said.

Christine Wallgren can be reached at clwallgren@aol.com.