The solar collector collects the heat that is generated from the sun and it stores it as heat energy. The first step about this process is that the sun shines through a glass window that is thick which is used for the sole purpose of letting the light in and stopping heat from leaving. Under the window there is a black tube that is used to carry water or any refrigerant and under that tube there is a reflector, which is curved. The reflector is used to focus the sunlight to the tube, which then absorbs it and heats the water that is inside.
Making the hot water
The water that is in the tube is then circulated by a pump so as to provide heat for the water and in some instances for the house as well. The tube first of all runs through a water tank and because it is made of metal, it is able to conduct heat much faster which allows it to run out of the tube and into the tank, which then creates hot water for the house. After this the tube can either run back to the solar collector for the purpose of gathering more heat or it can run to the available system for house heating.
Heating the house
It is evident that the heating systems that are powered by the hot circulating water are available in some solar houses. This makes it a lot easier because the hot water tube is able to run into the radiators that are placed all around the house. The process happens in a way that the radiators are able to conduct heat from the hot water, which is then spread into the air in order to warm the house. After this process of the water flowing through the radiators is done, it is usually pumped back to the solar collector in order to gather more heat for the continuation of the process.
Supplementing the solar power
The solar power usually works perfectly well during the sunny days and during the day but at night or during the cold weather conditions, it mostly leaves the house cold. It is therefore advisable to have a backup system that will allow the house to be warm during such times that the solar system is not providing heat.
There are many houses that have these backup systems and they use water heaters that usually turn on automatically when the temperatures have dropped too low and this is usually a great way to go about it. There are others that use backup of air heater that is usually switched on when the weather is severely cold. These backup systems are however used for houses that do not use solar systems but solar houses usually use insulation that enables them to use the solar heat efficiently and in a way that it is prevented from leaking out.
Active solar heating systems work perfectly and they save on the costs of using electricity in order to heat the houses. It is therefore advisable to emulate these systems so that one can be comfortable and also save on costs.