The Working Of A Solar Water Heater Explained In Details
A solar water heater is a great alternative for producing hot water every day. Heating water with the help of solar energy is the best alternative way rather than using electricity or gas. A solar water heater consists of solar collectors, a tank and a circulating pump. In some solar water heaters, a backup is also included for the days when solar energy is not available at all and you require hot water. Solar collectors are installed to collect the sunlight. The tank is for storing the hot water and the circulating pump is used for carrying the solar energy from the collector to the tank, and a thermal regulator. Read on to find out more about how a solar water heater works.
The basic function of a solar water heater is that it absorbs light with the help of collectors and then it is converted into heat energy. The circulating pump then passes the heat energy on to the water tank. This exchange is made possible with the help of the thermal regulator. This circulating pump is the reason why you don’t need electricity at all. It also prevents your water heater from overheating.
The collectors work best during the midday when the sky is most of the time cloudless and it should be made sure that the collectors are facing south. During the times when sunlight is insufficient, the water is preheated after which the back-up system takes over and bring the water to the needed hot temperature. This is why a solar water heater can be used to produce hot water without emitting any carbon dioxide. To properly know the working of a solar water heater, you should also know that their way of functioning differs due to the varying type of collectors and circulation systems.
Collector Types
1. Batch Collectors:
This type of collector allows the water to remain in the collector for a very long time if the demand for hot water is low. It is not generally used in very cold climates.
2. Flat-plate collectors:
It consists of parallel copper tubes connected at each end by two pipes which are known as the inlet and outlet.
3. Evacuated tube collectors:
These are known as the most efficient collectors. In this, a glass or metal tube is containing the water is surrounded by a larger glass tube.
Circulation Systems
1. Direct systems:
The most common type of system, it circulates water through the solar collectors and then stored in the tank after it is heated.
2. Indirect systems:
It uses a non-freezing liquid to transfer heat from the sun to the water in the tank.
3. Active systems:
This system uses electric pumps, valves and controllers to move water from the collectors to the storage tank.
4. Passive systems:
Natural convection transfers water from the collectors to the tank as it heats up without the help of any pump.
So, buy the best solar water heating system for yourself too after understanding which function will suit you the best.
