What Is Solar Thermal?
Solar Thermal is a clean and highly efficient means of using renewable energy from the sun to provide the hot water used in the home. The basic principle is easy to understand. If you unroll a garden hose on the ground and leave it exposed to the radiant heat of the sun, in a short time the water in the hose will become warm. Solar thermal collectors work in very much the same way, only more efficiently.
Usually, but not exclusively, roof mounted solar collectors will be connected to one of the coils of a twin-coil cylinder using a sealed circuit containing a special glycol/water solution. This fluid not only withstands the high temperatures in excess of 200ºC on a summer day but also will not freeze in temperatures down to –25ºC. The pump in the system circulates the heated fluid from the panel to the cylinder where the heat is transferred to the stored water through the lower coil.
Why Install Solar Thermal?
Solar thermal technology is the most reliable, efficient and accessible form of renewable energy available today and when combined with Grant's high-efficiency Vortex Condensing Boiler, annual fuel bills can be dramatically reduced. As solar water heating depends on radiation, not direct sunlight, it even works on dull days. Installing Grant Solar collectors can help reduce heating bills by providing up to 70% of a household's domestic hot water requirements per annum. Solar thermal is also great for the environment, as it has no emissions and is assured for the next 4 billion years. |
