"RichardS" noaccess@invalid wrote in message
...
"IMM" wrote in message
...


I could use 400 squ foot of flat plate collector on the roof, twice
the
area, and produce the same volume of solar hot water as the
Thermomax
solar
collectors which takes up half as much square footage.

The area is "very" important in this instant. Is that clear?

Yes, but efficiency is independent of that IMM.

Thats tantamount to saying a 5oKw boiler is twice as efficient as a
25Jw
one.

It is not. Solar collectors produce hot water. Some produce more than
others for the same area, hence more efficient for a given area.

No.

Efficiency is the ratio of converted power out to power in .

The area doesn't come into it.

In this case it does. Area is the most important factor as it is limited on
a roof. Solar panel X can be more efficient (ratio of converted power out
to power in) than panel Y. But panel X may take up four times the area of
panel Y. It means eff all if the area is not taken into account. For a
given area which is the most efficient? Area, area, area.




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