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Solar water heaters are very old and proven technology, with roots in ancient times. Modern solar water heating collectors can capture about 85% of the available solar energy in a given area. That’s far above the ~20% harnessed by commercially available solar electric panels. A question often asked is whether someone should buy a solar water heater or a solar electric system, but the answer is not always obvious. One of the solar water heaters we sell has a rating of 12.5kWh/day. This rating is based on a particular climate and rating category (relative water temperatures). What this rating tells us is that the collector isRead More →

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The 2014 solar pool heating season is in full swing, and our team is working hard to meet an aggressive installation schedule. This is our busiest time of the year – the combination of a high seasonal population in Southwest Florida and cool pools with great outdoor weather makes for a lot of phone calls. If you want solar pool heating for the best part of the swimming season, NOW is the time to get on our schedule. One of the big innovations we have embraced in recent years is the availability of affordable variable speed pumps. These pumps are huge money savers, and workRead More →

Solar Pool Heating Panels last a long time!

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Professionally installed Solar Pool Heating panels are an investment, and most people want to know how long Solar Pool Heating panels last. That’s a great question! Most major manufacturers provide a 10-12 year collector (panel) warranty that covers manufacturer defects. That shows you how confident the manufacturers are in the quality and longevity of a typical solar pool heating panel. Considering that over 100 million gallons of water can pass through a typical solar pool heating system in its lifetime, it truly is amazing how well solar panels stand up to the rigors of pressure, chemicals, sunlight, wind, and all of the other elements thatRead More →

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Tonight I was invited to part of a panel before a public group at the Naples Community Hospital. I guess you could call it a Solar Panel. Here is the text of my brief speech: “I would like to address the most common misconception about solar energy: Solar energy is expensive and cannot survive without government and utility incentives. The most common solar product installed in Southwest Florida is not solar electric or solar water heating for the home; it’s solar pool heating. Solar thermal energy has been effectively heating pools for four decades in Southwest Florida, and forms the bread and butter of the localRead More →

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NOTE: Your system may look different than pictured below, and may have a check valve on the return line rather than an isolation valve, especially if installed in 2014 or later. Please call if you are unsure. Pool plumbing can be confusing. Solar pool heating valves can add to that confusion. If you want to learn how to turn off and isolate your solar pool heating system with manual valves, you’ve come to the right place. The images and videos below show you how to turn the valves correctly to change the flow of water in your system. What’s pictured below is what we callRead More →

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It’s that time of year. People start calling to get solar pool heating systems installed as pool temperatures drop. New system owners get to experience the luxury of a warm pool at no operational cost for the first time. Existing system owners are faced with a few common issues. “My pool level is going down. There must be a leak.” “My solar pool heating won’t turn on. “My pool is ‘only’ 80°. Just last week it was 85°.” (Also, “My pool is ‘only’ 80 degrees, but I have the controller set at 85°.”) Each of these issues can be resolved without a service call inRead More →

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If you’re wondering what’s best, a solar water heater or a tankless water heater, the answer may be BOTH – or NEITHER! If you have an existing gas water heater that is in good repair, you may just want to add a solar water heater with additional storage capacity. If you have an electric storage water heater, you may want to retrofit your existing tank or add additional storage with a solar tank. There is a great article about the choice between a storage and tankless water heater on the Green Building Advisor website here. You should check out this article to learn some ofRead More →

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You want to know who is the best solar company in Southwest Florida serving Fort Myers, Naples, and Port Charlotte? Well, I can tell you it’s not the company that did this installation. I won’t name names, but to be clear it wasn’t us! The company that installed this system no longer uses the steel Z-bars shown here, partly because they result in ugly installations like this, but mostly because the steel bars trapped water and debris, causing roof problems.  

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What does the Acronym SPH stand for? SPH = Solar Pool Heat a.k.a Solar Pool Heat SPH is an acronym for Solar Pool Heat or Solar Pool Heating systems. SPH systems use polymer solar panels to heat pool water. SPH systems use solar thermal technology and do not produce electricity. Solar Pool Heating systems circulate pool water through the solar panels to transfer solar radiation to the pool, increasing water temperatures.

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What does the Acronym SDHW stand for? SDHW = Solar Domestic Hot Water a.k.a Solar Water Heating, Solar Water Panels SDHW is the term used in the solar industry to describe solar water heating collectors (panels) or systems. Several types of SDHW exist, including flat plat collectors made of copper heat exchangers in aluminum and glass enclosures, heat pipe collectors with copper pipe enclosed in evacuated (vacuum) glass tubes, and polymer collectors like the Fafco Revolution SDHW system.

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Solar water heating systems obviously heat water only during the day when solar radiation is hitting the solar collector. You might realize why it is important for Solar Water Heating Systems to store water, but to what extent should this be considered? In North America, most hot water is consumed in the morning, presumably for personal hygiene. The second most water is consumed in the evening, as people clean the kitchen and prepare for bed. This creates a scenario where hot water is required at times when the most energy is not available. Much of the water stored in a tank may be exhausted inRead More →

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I had a little fun creating this video from an older post about how you need different solar panels for different tasks. One solar panel can’t do it all – at least, not as effectively as panels designed for a specific purpose. Let me know what you think of this animated video. No Flash Player? View Here: http://www.youtube.com/v/GAA3BYpdPww I’m toying with the idea of creating some how-to videos using XtraNormal… just for fun.      

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I’m at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Broadway Apartments affordable housing project where we have 40 solar water heating systems installed. This is the largest polymer solar collector water heating project in Florida! Solar water heating will reduce the electric bills for residents of the two-building multi-tenant property. The goal of the project is to provide affordable housing that features low utility bills in a LEED Platinum facility. The solar water heating systems were one part of the LEED criteria that allowed the Broadway Apartments to achieve Platinum status. The Southwest Florida Affordable Housing Choice Foundation reports that previous residents are already asking forRead More →

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It’s a common misconception that one solar panel can do it all. While technically it is possible for solar electric panels to create electricity and to heat water using electricity, this is terribly inefficient. Any time energy changes forms, there is an efficiency loss, and in the case of heating water with electricity, the losses are tremendous. That’s why we have solar photovoltaic modules for electricity and solar thermal modules for heating water. Solar photovoltaic modules produce electricity and are approximately 15% efficient using today’s technology. That means for the amount of surface area they consume on your roof, only 15% of the sun’s energyRead More →