Solar power is on the rise because of its amazing energy-efficient benefits. Using sun to heat your water is a perfect way to help reduce your energy costs because the sun's energy is completely free. If you are considering installing a solar water heater, check out these four important facts.
There Are Active and Passive Systems
Solar water heaters come as active or passive. Active systems, as the name suggests, actively move water or a non-freezing solution through the system with the use of pumps and blowers. As a result of the automated controls, active systems are more effective than passive systems, but they are also more expensive.
Instead of using controls to move water around, passive systems use the natural rules of water. When water is hot, it naturally rises, and when water is cooled, it naturally falls, and that's exactly how a passive system works. With a passive system, the solar collector is kept lower than the water tank. For example, the collector may be kept on the ground and the water tank on the roof. This allows the heated water in the collector to rise to the water tank. At the same time, cooled water in the tank falls to the collector to be heated.
Circulation Can Be Direct or Indirect
Active heating systems come with direct or indirect circulation. Direct circulation uses pure water. Water is held in the collector and heated by the sun. It is then transferred to the water heater and the rest of the house to be used. Indirect circulation uses a non-freezing solution. This solution is heated in the collectors but instead of being used directly, the heat from the solution is transferred to water via a heat exchange. The heated water is then used for all your hot water needs. Indirect circulation is best for colder climates, so the liquid never freezes and breaks the system.
If you install a passive system, you only have one circulation option: direct. The reason is because of the way the water moves through the system. To transfer the heat from the non-freezing solution to the water, there needs to be mechanics, which passive systems lack.
You Have Three Options for Collectors
There are three different options for collectors. Flat-plate collectors are the most common, and they are the most iconic. They are the flat solar panels people usually install on roofs. The glass panels are filled with tubes for holding the water/non-freezing liquid, and each collector holds about 40 gallons of water, so most households will need at least two.
The other, less common, collectors are batch and evacuated-tube. Batch collectors look like dark tanks, and they are placed inside an insulated box. The benefit of the batch collector is the water can sit there until it's needed, but that also allows it to get extremely hot. Evacuated-tube collectors are the most efficient collector, and they are even good in overcast conditions. They consist of several tubes, which are surrounded by another glass tube. The air between the tubes works as an insulator to keep the liquid hot.
Solar Water Heating Lowers Your Monthly Energy Costs
The best thing about solar water heating is, regardless of which system or collector you choose, you will save money, but not right away. At first, you'll spend a lot of money installing the system. A standard active solar water heater system costs between $6,000 and $17,000.
Once the system is installed, however, is when you start seeing savings. With a solar water heater, you can actually reduce your water bill by half, and that's if you continue to use a traditional electric water heater as a backup. The savings, combined with the tax incentives, allow you to eventually break even on your investment.
A solar water heater is expensive, but it's an investment, and you will eventually break even and see savings. For more information regarding solar water heaters, contact a plumbing or water heater installation company in your area. Get a quote or have all your solar questions answered.
Share8 July 2015
Businesses come in all shapes and sizes. They provide us with all of the things that we need each day to live the lives we are used to. Are you considering starting up a business of your own? Do you have a hobby, interest, or skill that others could benefit from? Having watched as my son build a concrete finishing company from scratch, I have witness what persistence, patience, and hard work can do for a person. My blog focuses on what it takes to start a business and what you must do to ensure that your business is on a path to success.
