John Stumbles wrote:

On Thu, 29 May 2008 21:35:34 +0100, Fredrick Skoog wrote:

Hi All,

I am considering getting a solar heated hot water system

May I ask why? Given that domestic hot water is a small proportion of a
typical house's energy consumption then unless your house is already
insulated and draught-proofed to Scandanavian standards and has the most
efficient heating controls, condensing boiler and appliances and you're
not on mains gas I'd question the economic/ecological case for solar DHW.

It seems pointless using solar just for DHW. However using it to feed a
large thermal store seems a very good idea, and IME it is a very good
idea. OTOH the farm doesn't have mains gas, and oil for water heating is
currently the same price as diesel and propane isn't that much cheaper.

The main headache with solar is educating family and guests to fit their
use of hot water into the cycle of when hot water is available, that is
shower, bath, wash and do the laundry in the late afternoon. Also
finding a washing machine with hot water fill is a PITA.