My name is Natalie, and in this blog, I am going to write about a lot of different energy practices. I plan to write about solar panels, indoor air filtration, wind farms and whatever else strikes my fancy when I'm writing. I want to focus on easy and efficient energy practices, and I hope to explain how those practices can benefit the earth. My interest in energy and the environment started when I was just a teen. I attended a camp where we studied the environment whilst also doing a lot of foraging, hiking and other things that allowed us to engage with nature. From that week onward, I've wanted to change the world and its relationship with energy. I hope this blog is just the start.
2 Types Of Solar Hot Water Systems
Electric water heaters are often partly responsible for high energy consumption around the home. As such, electric heaters are increasingly being replaced by more energy-efficient water heating systems.
Discussed in this article are two types of residential solar hot water systems. This information is beneficial to homeowners looking to replace existing electric water heaters in their homes.
Split-System Solar Heaters
Split-system heaters are made up of solar collectors, an electric circulating pump, a gas/electric booster, storage tanks, and a solar controller. Solar collectors are installed on the roof where they absorb warm rays from the sun into the system. Water from the storage tank is circulated to the solar collectors through the action of the electric circulating pump. This water absorbs heat from the solar collectors before it flows back to the storage tank(s) for storage and subsequent use.
The controller works to disable pump operations once the water has been heated to a pre-determined level. This prevents the possibility of over-heating, thereby reducing power wastage.
Split-system heaters are preferred for their minimal visual impact. With the storage tank(s) installed unobtrusively on the ground and the collectors mounted on the roof, the heating system can easily go unnoticed.
Heat Pumps
Heat pumps consist of the pump itself and storage tank(s). The pump is made up of an evaporator, a compressor, and a condenser.
Heat pumps work to capture heat from the atmosphere, which is then transferred to a refrigerant gas in the pump's evaporator. The refrigerant gas passes through the heater's compressor, where its temperature and pressure are both increased. The gas is then sent to the condenser (on the storage tank's casing) where its heat is absorbed by cold water inside the tank. The (cold) refrigerant gas then moves back to the evaporator and the cycle continues.
Among the main advantages associated with the use of heat pumps is that their operation does not depend on the availability of direct sunlight. As such, heat pumps can be used to heat water regardless of the prevailing weather conditions. For this reason, they are preferred for use in geographic areas where the occurrence of frost is common. They are also preferred for situations in which the location or design of a house does not support the installation of solar panels.
Because heat pumps will often be a bit noisy when operational, homeowners are advised to install the pumps as far as possible from the windows of neighbouring properties.
Share28 January 2016
