Technologies continue to develop every year. We see improvement in different aspects every year, too. The idea of using a technology that is environmentally friendly, easy to install, and affordable price is one of these many good things.

Take the solar hot water system as an example.

What is a Solar Hot Water System?

Solar hot water is a technology that promotes good preservation of energy. It is a kind of tool that can be used to capture sunlight in order to heat the water in your pipes, which is useful for baths, showers, etc.

Elements or Components
  • Thermal Power or Solar Collector. Basically, a system is composed of a solar collector or an acquirer. Such a device is responsible for capturing the power from the sunlight and stopping it from escaping. This is also where the heat exchange takes place, in which the Sun’s heat is used to heat or warm the water.
  • The Storage. It is the area where the heated water is sent to for storage once it has been heated.
  • The Solar Booster. It can be added to your set up to make the most of your solar collecting water system. Solar boosters are either powered by gas or electricity and it can warm your water even when the sun is not around.
Two Types of Solar Hot Water System (Passive and Active)

Technically, there are two types of solar hot water systems. They are called passive and active solar hot water systems.

A passive system relies on the natural buoyancy or thermosyphon effect created when the temperature of the water in the collector rises, which causes the water itself to rise as it becomes less dense with increased temperature. Thus, the circulation in the circuit.

The Advantages and Disadvantages
  • Advantages. As its name suggests, a solar hot water system operates without electricity and is rather powered by the sun’s light or energy. For that very reason, you will not need to spend a lot of money to run this kind of technology since the source of power is free.

    Aside from that, the maintenance cost is low, too, given that its mechanical parts are accessible and affordable.
  • Disadvantages. The solar hot water system has a poor collecting system as it is beneath the solar store. The same goes for the circulation rate. You will need some serious planning to reap all the benefits, too, which can be expensive.
Active System
  • Advantages. Unlike passive solar heating, active solar heating uses mechanical and electrical equipment to improve the conversion of solar energy to heat and electric power. In addition, it uses solar energy to heat a fluid—either liquid or air—and then transfer the solar heat directly to the interior space or to a storage system for later use.

    There is also greater flexibility in the design and location of the system offered by the integration of circulation pumps. The solar system cannot provide adequate space heating. An auxiliary or backup system provides the additional heat.
  • Disadvantages. For the bane of this type of solar hot water system. It requires higher maintenance costs as mechanical parts are present in the system. Also, the running costs are higher than the electricity required.  Yet, a reliable source of electricity is needed for operation.

Overall, this technology is a crucial thing because it gives us more satisfaction and is convenient for us. However, the most important thing is we could take the initiative to make our planet free from pollution. We utilized the energy coming from the sun to a useful one.

So, better contact Level Plumbing Canberra now at (02) 6188 6088 and try this technology and begin to be a pro-environment individual.