Canadian wells: natural and inexpensive solution to ventilate the house

Canadian wells, sometimes known as Provence wells, are an eAn example of geothermal air conditioning, which is increasingly used because of its simplicity.

These systems consist of: pipes placed under the houses and connected to them to regulate the temperature inside the houses. It is a system that does not consume any electrical energy, so its only cost is its installation. From then on, the home’s air conditioning costs will be cheaper because a lot of money will be saved on every bill.

The principle on which Canadian wells are based is simple: The air accumulated in the underground pipes is cooler than the air inside the house during the summer months. In winter, the situation is the opposite: the underground air is warmer than the air inside the house.. In this way, we have a natural source of heat exchange that will warm us in winter and cool in summer without the need to consume electricity.

This type of bioclimate strategy significantly increases the energy efficiency of a building. Of course, it is cheaper if the installation is done later when the house is being built, but in any case the advantages are obvious.

The temperature of the surface varies with the temperature of the environment, and this difference becomes evident and remains constant. at a depth of two or three meters, where the temperature usually remains constant around 18ºC-24ºC, As described by the custom portal Abouthaus.

Its structure is based on laying channels 2 to 4 meters deep and approximately 35 meters long under the ground and circulating the air in these channels. The air, in contact with the ducts, takes the temperature of the floor and then we will introduce it to the rooms of the house, with or without the extra heat input.

It is estimated that a constant temperature can be found throughout the year at a depth of about 15-20 meters. However, at a depth of about 3 meters, we already find temperatures that we might consider close to optimum comfort temperatures (18º to 24º) in a home.

It is recommended to examine the soil beforehand.

Before installing a Canadian well The soil of the plot is studied to know its thermal conductivity and other properties it offers.. In this way, its full potential and possible disadvantages can be known.

The thermal conductivity of soils depends on their porosity and degree of saturation.

For example, granular soils containing clay or silt have a higher degree of thermal conductivity than sandy soils.

On the other hand, the ultimate conductivity of clean sandy soils is low when dry and high when saturated.

The presence of water has a strong influence on the thermal properties of the soil, including its thermal conductivity and heat capacity.

In winter:

In winter, the weather outside is cold. But at a depth of two or three meters, the temperature is already higher than outside. For this reason, when the air coming from the outside circulates through the underground pipes, it heats up and improves the climatic conditions of the house when it reaches here. Electric heating can be greatly reduced or even completely avoided, depending on the situation.

In summer:

In summer, the temperature outside is higher than underground. In this way, the air passing through the underground pipes is cooled and reaches the interior of the house a few degrees less, thus increasing the comfort of the house and reducing or preventing the consumption of air conditioning or ventilation.

Reference article: https://about-haus.com/how-to-build-a-canadian-well/

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