How Solar Works

... your familiar lifestyle and water use will be virtually unchanged. However, your energy consumption and carbon footprint will be dramatically reduced!

How Solar Works

A solar hot water system is really quite simple and extremely reliable. You are using the sun's energy to heat a solar collector full of fluid which then transfers that heat into your home's hot water tank.

(1) When there is sufficient heat to be drawn from the collectors, a controller automatically activates pumps. (2) Heated solar fluid is then circulated from the collector, (3) through a heat exchanger where its heat is transferred to (4) water in the storage tank. (5) The solar fluid is then pumped back to the collector to once again be reheated. This circulation loop will continue as long as there is heat to be drawn from the collector. During times when there is little or no sun, a backup heating system will be activated to provide adequate hot water.

Today's solar hot water systems have a typical lifespan of 25 years or more with minimal maintenance. Solar water heaters are designed to be fully automatic, so your familiar lifestyle and water use will be virtually unchanged. However, your energy consumption and carbon footprint will be dramatically reduced!

The solar hot water system can be used for domestic hot water heating, space heating, and pool heating.

Solar Domestic Hot Water

Domestic hot water refers to the hot water you use everyday inside your home. It is the hot water you use to bath, shower, and wash including the hot water used by your dishwasher and washing machine.

When you install a solar domestic hot water system, the system works as described above utilizing solar energy to heat the water instead of gas, oil, or electricity.

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Solar Space Heating

Solar space heating water heaters are typically much larger in size than a domestic hot water heater. The water is heated and stored in the very same manner as with the solar domestic hot water heater. Once the water in the storage tanks is heated by the sun, it is used to supplement the water previously heated only by your existing boiler. This is done by either tying the solar storage tanks into your existing heating system, or by installing a separate loop that feeds radiant heaters to heat additional areas of your home. Either way, a solar space heater can provide as much as a 35% reduction in your annual heating costs

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Solar Pool Heating

When there is sufficient heat to be drawn from the collectors, the pool controller automatically activates the pumps and circulates the heated solar fluid. The solar fluid will pass through a heat exchanger, transferring its heat to the pool water passing through the exchanger. The heated pool water is then circulated through a filter and back into the pool while the solar fluid is circulated back to the collectors to be reheated. This circulation loop will continue as long as there is heat to be drawn from the collectors.

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