Solar Collectors
Solar heating panels or solar “collectors” come in two principal forms – evacuated tubes and flat plate collectors. The system is connected to the hot water system. Solar water heating systems can provide over half of a household’s hot water requirements over the year in UK conditions.
Solar water flat plate collectors in their simplest form are made from a sheet of metal painted black which absorbs the suns energy. Water is fed through the panel in pipes attached to the metal sheet and picks up the heat in the metal. The metal sheet is embedded in an insulated box and covered with glass or clear plastic on the front. The system is usually installed on the roof. The evacuated tube system is a series of glass heat tubes grouped together. The tubes are highly insulated, achieved by a vacuum inside the glass.
The collectors convert the ultra violet rays of sunlight to heat which is then transferred through a closed water system to a hot water tank. Solar heating is only applicable to hot water heating and not for space heating, although the heat can be utilised through a heat exchanger to a space heating system. The greater the sunshine the more heat is produced. The water will not always be able to heat water to normal domestic hot water temperature (60°), and so a secondary heating system is needed to top up the solar heat
For more information download the Solar Heating FACT sheets