We love summer in Sooke – –  now that it’s here.  With West Coast beaches, fishing, whale watching, kayaking, hiking, and fine food at your doorstep the charming town of Sooke, British Columbia offers a lot. So over the next month I will blog about what I think are some ‘cool things’ to do in Sooke and with our partners in the Sooke community create some neat offers to get you out to experience some real Sooke fun.

We also think it’s cool that the new homes in Woodland Creek are green and conserve energy, but did you know that another great feature of a Geothermal (or Geo Exchange) system is that it Air Conditions the home during warmer months.

Callumwood Lane, the lastest phase of Woodland Creek, offers homes with geothermal heating, air conditioning, and hot water. Woodland Creek is the first neighbourhood in Sooke to offer this energy and cost efficient form of climate control for homes. The result is you live in a better, healthier, and more comfortable environment and at the same time consume less energy, save money, and reduce your carbon foot print.  That’s smart living.

How does this work? The homes on Callumwood Lane incorporate ground source heat pumps that move heat to and from the earth by circulating fluid through a vertical ground loop. Unlike conventional heating systems that burn fossil fuels or use electricity to create heat, heat pumps simply move heat from one place to another.

During the winter, a geothermal system collects this low-grade thermal energy from the earth and concentrates it inside the house or building to provide space heating. In the summer, the process is reversed and the heat pump moves heat from the building and stores it back in the ground leading to an air conditioned home.

Want to feel the difference of a geothermal home. Come to the Woodland Creek Showhome during open house hours (Sunday 1PM- 4PM) or by appointment to see and feel for yourself.

By the way we’d love to hear about your favourite way to stay cool in Sooke. Comment here or on our facebook page.

Regards,

Blair

Directions and GPS coordinates to showhome click here.

 

Here are 5 key benefits of a Geothermal System.

Lower Operating Costs – Because geothermal systems operate more efficiently than ordinary heating and air conditioning systems, annual operating cost are in the range of 30% to 60% lower then other heating and cooling systems. Geothermal operating costs are approximately 1/4 to 1/3 of electric baseboard heat.

Environmentally Friendly – Geothermal systems eliminate the combustion of fossil fuels on site and dramatically reduce the need to generate power – thereby lowering emissions of greenhouse gasses and the environmental damage associated with non-renewable resource extraction.

Comfort – Because geothermal systems use the relatively stable temperature of the earth as an energy source, you are assured of constant, even heating in winter and better humidity control in the summer. Geothermal systems eliminate the need for exhaust venting, reducing the number of penetrations in the building envelope and improving weather tightness.

Safety – No flame, no flue, no odors, no risk from carbon monoxide. Just safe, reliable operation year after year.

Quiet – The completely self-contained indoor equipment does not need a noisy, unsightly outside condensing unit. Geothermal systems are quiet and discrete. Other than the lower energy bills, you will hardly know they are there

 

Blair and Warren Robertson of Totangi Properties, created the Sooke, BC Real Estate development, Woodland Creek – a community of affordable, new homes for sale that use geo-thermal systems for heating, cooling, and hot water. They are unabashed Sooke supporters, tweeting as @woodland_creek with the hashtags, #sooke, #ysookerox and updating fans with Sooke offers, contests, and information at facebook.com/woodlandcreeksookebc.