I've got to jump back in here and say that I think it is a misconception that a geo system is some kind of complicated, mysterious, or delicate system. It is no different than a run-of-the-mill every day conventional heat pump, except that it exchanges heat in water rather than in air. It is because this exchange is so much easier that geo systems are incredibly efficient. So instead of having a noisy fan blowing cold air through a coil under your bedroom window, you have a coil of plactic pipe soaking up heat at the relatively warm bottom of your pond.
Conventional heat pumps have heat strips too. If there is a system malfunction or circumstances cause the heat strips to come on, the high electric bills will result just the same.
Now if you build your own control system or use a heat pump (geo or conventional) to heat radiant concrete floors, we have a whole different thing going on. Nothing wrong with either of these things, it's just that they would add complication to any kind of system. I intend to use my system to heat 2200 sq.ft. of radiant concrete, and when I do, I'll probably look into building a Rube Goldberg control system for it myself.
When I was shopping for my geo system, I looked at several manufacturers. What I found is that there are no low-end geo systems. They all are high quality units, and this is reflected in their price tags. I went with the WaterFurnace because my neighbor was happy with his, and I got what I thought was a reasonable price from the installer. With the exception of a few start-up bugs with the zone system, my geo system has been out of sight and out of mind. Except when the electric bill comes. That's when I know I made the right decision to pay-up for it.
I would hate to see anyone with the opportunity to put in a geo system, which is almost everyone on this web site, not do so because of a fear that it is complicated or unreliable.
