A solar Water Heater is a very beneficial way to save money
and use energy that is eco-friendly. Solar heaters have to have certain things
to work right. They must have solar
thermal collectors, a fluid system to move the heat from the collector to its
point of usage, and a reservoir or tank for heat storage and subsequent use.
The systems may be used to heat water for home or business use, for swimming
pools, under floor heating or as an energy input for space heating and cooling
and industrial applications.
In most northern states
a hot water heater combined with a space heater can provide 15 to 25% of the
homes heating energy. Some solar thermal installations can be divided into two
different kinds of systems: compact and pumping systems. Both include an energy
source that is activated when the water in the tank falls below a minimum
temperature setting. This makes it so that hot water is always available all
day any day.
In the 1920s
Flat-plate collectors for solar water heating were popular in Florida
and South Carolina.
Then in 1967, 20% of Israel’s
population used solar water heaters because they have an abundant amount of sun
light. This has led to Israel
being the world leader in the use of solar power. Today with more people
becoming concerned with the environment the solar systems are becoming very
popular in the United States.
However the global solar thermal market is dominated by China, Europe, Japan
and India.
A flat plate
collector consists of a thin absorber sheet, mostly copper, backed by a grid or
coils of fluid tubing and placed in an insulated casing with a glass cover.
Fluid is circulated through the tubing to remove the heat from the absorber and
transport it to an insulated water tank, or a heat exchanger or to some other
device for using the heated fluid.
There
are two types of solar water heating parts in each system: active, which have
circulating pumps and controls, and passive, which don't. Most solar water heaters
require a well-insulated storage tank. Solar storage tanks have an additional
outlet and inlet connected to and from the collector. In two-tank systems, the
solar water heater preheats water before it enters the conventional water
heater. In one-tank systems, the back-up heater is combined with the solar
storage in one tank. Though the solar water heater may sound complicated they
are easy to put up and easy to maintain. Plus the save a lot of money long term
and they are great for the environment.
