RESIDENTIAL SOLAR HOT WATER
HOW YOUR SYSTEM WORKS
The principles of solar hot water heating are very simple.
Collector tubes absorb the heat from the sun and transfer it to the water or other liquid flowing through the tubes, in the same way that water in a garden hose will heat up if left lying in the sun.
Let's look at the components of your hot water system and how they work.
Your system is made up of...
- Solar collector panels;
- A well-insulated storage tank, with heat exchanger;
- A circulating pump; and
- A control unit.
Depending on the size of your family, and your particular hot water requirements, you will need either one or two solar collectors.
In a conventional water heating system, cold water (approximately 50 - 60 degrees Fahrenheit) is fed from the city supply or your well into the gas or electric water heating system where it is heated to a comfortable level of about 130 degrees Fahrenheit. This takes a lot of energy.
With your solar hot water system
- Cold water is fed into your solar storage tank.
- The pump circulates a non-freeze fluid through the solar collectors where it is heated by the sun.
- The heated fluid is pumped back through the heat exchanger in the storage tank where the heat is transferred to the water.
The control unit continually monitors the temperature of the fluid in the collectors and the temperature in the tank. If the fluid in the collectors is significantly warmer than the water in the tank, the pump circulates the fluid through the collectors.
Your pump switches off automatically when there is insufficient sunlight and the collectors are no longer able to raise the temperature of the water in the storage tank.
This happens when the sun is at a very low angle or when there is a thick cloud cover, and at night. The pump automatically starts again when enough sunlight is available.
Temperatures in your solar storage tank can be as high as 120 degrees F in winter and 150 degrees F in the summer months. When you turn on a hot water faucet in your home, your water requires no, or very much less heating, to get to your required temperatures.
Your solar hot water system is used in conjunction with your existing water heating system, or a specially installed instant water heater. This system provides the additional heat required to bring your solar-heated water up to your desired temperature, it also copes with increased demand during prolonged cloudy weather or when you have visitors in your home.
