The Solar water heaters are cost efficient and harmless to the environment. They are very trouble-free devices which work in a rather simple way. The Solar Water Heaters use the collectors to absorb the sunlight. Usually, there are two types of collectors used in these heaters.
Various and working of the types of absorption methods
The first type is the flat plate collector which could be suitable for the solar panels that are mounted on roof tops. These are the most commonly used types of Solar Panels and they require considerable amount of sunlight. The second type contains evacuated types which collect sunlight. This type of collector is used in areas where the presence of sunlight is low.
The first type works in a very simple way. It contains a water storage device inside which a copper tube is placed. The collector sends the sunlight in form of electrons into the storage device where the electrons excite the copper tube producing heat. This heat is transferred to the water and thus the water is heated. This water can be taken out through suitable plumbing systems.
The working of the second type is much more complex. The system contains evacuated tubes which have a partial vacuum in them. The copper tubes are kept inside the vacuum and all the copper tubes are connected to the central area. Then this is connected with a circulation tank which will pump the water into the collector. By this way, the water will be heated and kept in a separate tank. This method is carried on and on throughout the day and during the night too, the water is kept hot since the circulation tank is insulated.
The second method is more efficient because it could extract sunlight even when there is no direct sunlight falling on it. This is because there is a vacuum inside the glass tubes. Since it has many tubes connected to a central setup, it could absorb sunlight even when the sun is not straight at the panel during evening and early morning times.
Attachments that can be made to the Panel's tank
The water tank is attached with a device that will limit the temperature to around 45 degree Celsius. This attachment is very important because the temperature might exceed great levels in addition to 100 degree Celsius which will cause great danger if you touch them.
Another attachment which might be of great use is the electricity booster. The Sunlight will give you sufficient energy when there is plenty of sunlight. But you cannot deny the fact that more than 25% of the days are cloudy and don't provide necessary sunlight. So, if you want to use the heater on days like these, you need to attach the electricity booster. The booster will induce whatever sunlight it gets and it will maximize the effect giving you hot water as always.
Be a Green Activist
If you are green activist, you should know that electric water heaters are responsible for the emission of 20% of the greenhouse gases. If you replace them with the eco-friendly solar water heaters, you will be able to protect the environment to a greater extent.
My wife and I have thought about installing a solar water heater before, so thanks for sharing this. I like your point about how the attachment needs to be able to handle 100 degrees or higher. We’ll keep this in mind when planning out our own system.