Are Solar Water Heater Efficient?

We have seen many individuals install water heating systems based on solar power. This will usually happen as there is the possibility of cutting down...


We have seen many individuals install water heating systems based on solar power. This will usually happen as there is the possibility of cutting down on warm water or/and electricity bills. This type of system did exist for a lot of time but we can say that just now they are actually efficient. Now the question that we have to ask ourselves is what makes a solar water heater system efficient.?

To put it simple, an efficient system is one that offers us all the warm water that we need on a normal basis. In most situations one person will use around 30 gallons of water daily but not all of it needs to be hot water. It is a common belief that solar water heaters are really efficient during the hot days but less efficient during colder days. The truth is that even during winter we can still maintain an efficiency of around 50%. This is mostly true when we are faced with systems using evacuated tubes or vacuums. Unfortunately a number of systems are inefficient.

The materials used are the main reason why efficiency can be less than optimal. People are trying to cut costs down and this might actually sacrifice some materials that are used. It is definitely important to always use really good materials. Even if the prices are higher when you start out all will be made up as time passes. Efficient materials will allow for sun heat to be better transformed into fuel for warming water. Also, there are materials that will help gain enough power to warm the water till 50 degrees when winter comes.

All the materials that will be used in any solar water system will have one efficiency grade. You can ask specialists or even do Internet searches to find those systems that are mostly efficient. The only complicated part appears when a big house has to be covered or you want to warm the water in a swimming pool. Fortunately you can easily achieve this and also gain efficiency.

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