<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=windows-1252"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;"><div>Nick, </div><div><br></div><div>I looked into some of the systems you suggest and they aren’t as cost effective as you might think. There’s even a newish system out of New Zeland that uses a combination of solar and condensation to produce hot water under any weather conditions, but it’s not cheap! I think the day will come when the efficiency of heat-pump electric hot water heaters, the efficiency of pv, and the lowering price of pv will make these systems cost competitive with solar thermal. </div><div><br></div><div>In the meantime, I already have a garage full of 4x10 flate plate collectors in good condition and am using them for different projects, including a stellar thermosyphon system on my rural property that cranks out a ton of hot water. </div><div><br></div><div>Thermal collectors are also much more efficient than pv, and a good thermal system can also be married to a hydronic heating system, as well as air handlers to be incorporated into existing hvac systems. We installed a multi-system in San Francisco where the old hvac beast was removed and replaced with an air handler and high efficiency solar gas boiler. It was heated or “pre-heated” by solar thermal, provided all the hot water needs of the house, hot air into the existing hvac, and a single low-temp baseboard heater for one of the bedrooms which was in the basement and cold year-round….it works like a charm and the owners are happy with it. </div><div><br></div><div>I wouldn’t regard Solarhart’s standing as reflecting the solar thermal industry. All major hot water heater companies offer solar thermal packages so along with PV solar thermal has gone much more mainstream. And in the US people don’t like the look of Solarhart….but they’re all over Europe. </div><div><br></div><div>Dan</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><br><div><div>On Apr 10, 2016, at 9:02 PM, Nick Pyner <<a href="mailto:npyner@ihug.com.au">npyner@ihug.com.au</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite">
<meta content="text/html; charset=windows-1252" http-equiv="Content-Type">
<div bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#000000">
<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 11/04/2016 9:33 AM, Sacie Lambertson
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote cite="mid:CAM6L0t6ZTbasqx91bautaVfpvHNyvms7cw3Mh-RM67Brj8zcsg@mail.gmail.com" type="cite">
<div dir="ltr">
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif;font-size:small"><br>
</div>
<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif;font-size:small">A PV
set-up that produces sufficient hot water you don't have to
purchase the gas/electricity to heat water?</div>
<br>
</div>
</blockquote>
<br>
I submit that has to be the way to go these days, and solar thermal
is just passé, which I understand is reflected in Solarhart's share
index.. The bigger the PV array you have, the cheaper it gets, and
you can use electricity for all sorts of things, HWS included, while
solar thermal just produces hot water and nothing else. Further,
once the solar thermal has done its job, it is simply taking up roof
space that could be more gainfully employed producing electricity.
Now I don't know if you are in a position to benefit from any
feed-in tariff for surplus electricity, but I bet you don't have any
feed in tariff for hot water, and I also bet you won't be charging a
battery with it either.<br>
<br>
With PV, you can use a standard electric storage heater and
plumbing, the heater doesn't know or care where the power comes
from, and any wiring changes should be minimal. Paying a plumber to
go on a roof was never that good an idea and, if you have electric
storage HWS already, it would surely be madness now. Another
advantage of electric storage is that it can probably be painlessly
replaced by a heat pump unit, which can significantly reduce the PV
demand. <br>
<br>
There's some food for thought for you<br>
<br>
Nick Pyner<br>
<br>
Dee Why Beach NSW<br>
</div>
_______________________________________________<br>Greenbuilding mailing list<br>to Send a Message to the list, use the email address<br><a href="mailto:Greenbuilding@bioenergylists.org">Greenbuilding@bioenergylists.org</a><br><br>to UNSUBSCRIBE or Change your List Settings use the web page<br>http://lists.bioenergylists.org/mailman/listinfo/greenbuilding_lists.bioenergylists.org</blockquote></div><br></body></html>