Installing A Solar Power Water Heater - Will You Save Money
by Adrian Fletcher Solar power water heater systems are a way to save money on your utility bills (heating water is usually one of the most costly uses of electricity or gas) so should you install a system or not. This article will ask if it makes sense economically for the home owner to install a solar water heating system. Solar power water heater systems are usually used in conjunction with the existing hot water system. They consist of a method of collecting thermal rays from the sun. They use a solar collector that can simply be a water container that has added features to absorb the sun’s heat or a length of tubing that also has sun absorbing features added to it. Water is circulated through the tank or tubing based on it’s temperature. As it passes through the tank or tubing it is heated up and is then passed to the regular boiler or plumbing system in the home. So the saving on energy bills comes when the boiler does not have to use as much electricity or gas to heat the water up to an adequate temperature for the home. But does this cost saving justify the hassle of putting in a solar water heating system and the associated cost ? To start with, you should look into your existing hot water system. Saving money is not only about looking at free sources of energy but making your use of energy as efficient as possible. You should consider installing the latest energy saving boiler and get proper lagging to insulate the tank. The boiler should be the right size for your hot water needs. An over sized boiler will cost more over time.

Once you have worked this out, there a 5 things to think about when it comes to the viability of a solar power water heater. These are : The annual amount of hot water used by your family - Take an average over a few months or record a whole year if you have the time. If you are taking an average remember that usage may increase in colder seasons and factor this into the total. When the hot water is used - You will get more benefit form the heated water at the peak of the sun’s thermal energy (midday) than at night, however you are more likely to use it at night. What the current heating system is and it’s compatibility with the solar system. How much the solar water system will cost - this depends on the size of the system which depends on your usage of hot water. With this said, the future should see solar systems drop in price as people become more interested in then. The cost of the energy that your current hot water system uses - this will undoubtedly rise in the future as most of these fuels are finite. The price to find, extract and transport the raw materials will increase and this will be past onto the consumer. So it seems clear that in the future it will make sense to get a solar water system but it cannot really be quantified. But what about the here and now ? when you investigate possible systems you will be given indications of the saving you can make. You can factor this into the predicted annual usage of your home and get a figure on how much savings can be made. Again it is not rigorous but it will give you an idea.