How does a geothermal system work?

A geo system works very much like the refrigerator in your kitchen.  Refrigerant that is changing from a liquid to a vapor takes heat out of the refrigerator and dissipates that heat into your kitchen through the heat exchanger fins under or behind the refrigerator.  Imagine that your home or building is the refrigerator.  But instead of dissipating the heat to the kitchen – the heat is dissipated to an earth loop field in the ground.  In the winter this refrigeration cycle can be reversed to “cool” the earth loop field and heat your home or building.