Solar Water Heating Systems

A solar hot water system is sized from consumption, not from roof area: how many people use hot water, when, and at what temperature. We match collector area and storage volume to that demand so the system pays for itself in steady savings rather than sitting oversized and over-budget.

Orientation and plumbing matter as much as sizing. Collectors need a north-facing, unshaded exposure in our hemisphere, correct tilt, and short hot-water runs to the storage cylinder. Where the roof or plumbing layout does not suit, we design around it — thermosiphon layouts for simple installations, pumped circulation where the cylinder must sit elsewhere.

Installation covers the collectors and their mounting, the storage cylinder, circulation and safety plumbing, and the backup element and controls. We integrate the solar circuit with the building's existing hot water supply — usually a gravity or booster-fed cylinder — so the solar system feeds the same taps and showers the household already uses.

Every installation includes the safety hardware that protects it: temperature and pressure relief on the cylinder, non-return and isolation valves on the circuit, and properly flashed, sealed roof penetrations. We also keep a backup element in the circuit, because even the best solar week occasionally needs help.

Solar systems are low-maintenance, not no-maintenance. Collectors should stay clean and unshaded; glycol or water in the circuit needs periodic checking; anodes in the cylinder wear; and valves and pumps (on pumped systems) need exercising and testing. A short annual service keeps output at design levels and catches small issues early.

We also service systems installed by others — restoring circulation where air locks have stalled it, replacing failed sensors or controllers, re- sealing roof penetrations, and adding backup controls to old installations that lack them.