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By Brandon WronskiB
With the right method, tooling and high torque drill rig, residential geothermal loop installers will find success in most ground conditions.
for the auger flights. An auger plate (also called a foot plate) is used when extracting augers. It is a simple tool/fork that slides in between the auger flights to prevent them from falling back down the bore hole. A big advantage of overburden drilling with augers is that the mechanical action of the auger flighting packs the drilled soil into the sides of the bore, creating a stronger side wall than air or mud rotary drilling. This reduces the chances of the side walls collapsing and allows the bore to stay open for a longer period of time compared to other rotary drilling methods. In some soil, the bore will stay open long enough to be able to drill the rest of the hole with either mud or air rotary, insert the HDPE loop and grout the hole. In less stable soil conditions, PVC casing can be inserted by hand or by using the drill rigs down force into the open bore. To reach the required depth, sections of PVC casing can be threaded together or bonded using PVC cement. Once the casing is in place, the down the hole hammer or
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mud rotary bit (air and mud drilling will be explained in detail in the following articles) can be inserted and drilled into the bedrock to complete the remainder of the bore hole. The PVC casing stops side wall erosion of the soft overburden and keeps the bore open at a constant diameter. This helps maintain the up-hole velocity of the flushing air or mud and keeps drilling penetration rates high. Once the HDPE loop is installed, and while the hole is being filled with grout, the PVC casing can be removed by hand or using the drill rigs winch line. PVC pipe is far less expensive than commonly used steel casing and a thicker PVC pipe such as Schedule 80 that is also threaded can be used over and over again. Casings, auger drilling and overburden are all important parts of the geothermal loop installation process. These issues are complex, yet drilling does not have to be burdensome if you use the right method, tooling and high torque drill rig.
In less stable soil conditions, PVC casing can be inserted by hand or by using the drill rigs down force into the open bore. The PVC casing stops side wall erosion of the soft overburden and keeps the bore open at a constant diameter.
Brandon Wronski is an equipment specialist with RigKits LLC, based in Charlotte, N.C.
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