Saturday, June 29, 2013

Solar Hot Water

Existing solar-thermal array.
We are very pleased to tell you that the swimming pool at the Lajitas RV park is now solar heated! Using an existing array that was never fully installed, we were able to complete the project, meaning that the solar-thermal collectors pictured above are no longer only decorative.

Lajitas Pool
Solar-thermal is also part of our Grand Scheme for a low-impact home, for both hot running water and hydronic heating in the winter months.

The concept of solar-heated water is pretty simple, and has been used for over 100 years.

Everyone should be using solar-heated hot water! We are always surprised to find people using electric or gas water heaters out here, where there is so much sun and heat.

A basic solar batch heater can be made inexpensivly using an insulated box with south-facing glass and a tank of your choice. Plans can be found on the Mother Earth News website.

Best of luck y'all.

3 comments:

  1. Great job on the installation!

    Is it passive or does it have a pump to circulate the water? Does it actually heat the water directly or is there a heat transfer between some liquid that won't freeze and the actual water?

    Looks like we'll be out later in July, hopefully we can catch up with y'all and visit in person.

    -Brad and Marilynn

    ReplyDelete
  2. Name for photo.....Never saw it coming !

    ReplyDelete