Patent ID: 8267195

Claim:
A ground thawing and boring-with-fluid apparatus consisting of: a. a first heat exchanger transferring heat from a cooling system of a fuel burning engine to a working-fluid to be used to thaw and bore a hole in frozen ground; b. a second heat exchanger transferring heat from an exhaust system of the fuel burning engine to the working-fluid to be used to thaw and bore the hole in frozen ground; c. a third heat exchanger transferring heat from a hydraulic power system to the working-fluid to be used to thaw and bore the hole in frozen ground; d. a first device to variably restrict the hydraulic system to increase pressure and produce additional heat in the hydraulic system; e. a second device to increase work load on the fuel burning engine to produce additional heat in the cooling system of the engine; f. a first tubular member containing a first conduit down which the working-fluid can be moved; g. a second tubular member containing a second conduit up which the working-fluid can be moved; h. a shaft having a rotatable stirring head at its lower end; at least one first motor and pump to move the working-fluid from a fluid containment tank down the first conduit; at least one second motor and pump to move the working-fluid up the second conduit to the fluid containment tank; the rotatable stirring head being located near the outlet of the first conduit down which the working-fluid is pumped.