Abstract Outline

The huge power source we call The Sun has been used for millennia as a viable source for heating and lighting. North American building techniques have lost the art of harnessing the vast power of the sun. There are many ways to collect the power of the sun to gain electricity, heating and lighting. These include Solar Voltaic Panels to gain electricity, and Solar Passive techniques to design a house’s layout and windows to gain light and heat. Solar Hot Water Heaters, also known as Solar Thermal Collectors can be used to heat a house and your water supply. By using Solar Thermal Panels, we can drastically reduce the amount of energy we consume from the power grids.

There are 2 main types of Solar Thermal Collectors, open and closed loops. Open loops directly heat your water that is in your water supply and water tanks. Closed loops heat a mixture of water and antifreeze that is pumped through a water heat collector to heat your water supply. With a closed loop, you can pump the heated liquid through your floors or walls to give radiant floor heating or wall heating.

Within these 2 main types of collection systems, there are 2 basic ways for harnessing the solar heat, vacuum tubes and filled tubes. Vacuums are great for transferring heat. Vacuum tubes have a smaller water tube inside that heats water very efficiently. Filled tubes are a basic tube filled a liquid. These 2 ways of collecting heat are both efficient and can work even during cloud cover.

Solar Thermal Collectors are becoming a very feasible way of reducing your heating costs. Solar Heating can be added to any house, anywhere. The amount of energy that can be saved by using just one Solar Thermal Collector can make a huge impact on the amount of energy a house uses from the grid. The Sun has a huge amount of energy we can harness and need to think about harnessing to combat the environmental challenges to date.

PROJECT OUTLINE

PROJECT

I will be looking at the benefits and disadvantages of solar hot water heating in the Okanagan region of British Columbia. This will include the pros and cons of adding a system to an existing residential space or building a residential space with a system in place. Finally, I will research the feasibility of such a system, and find rough estimates as to the break even point for implementing a solar hot water system.

METHOD

In order to research this topic, I will be using the following:
- Academic Resources
- Academic Reports
- Science Journals
- Building and Architectural Journals
- Magazines
- Internet.

APPROACH

1. What are solar hot water heaters?
2. How do they work?
3. What types are available?
4. How do the different types compare to each other?
5. How are they placed within a house?
6. How efficient are they?
7. Would other conventional water heaters have to be added to the system?
8. What are the maintenance costs?
9. Is this system feasible?

SPECIAL PROBLEMS

1. How does the time of year affect solar hot water heaters?
2. How does placement on a roof/wall affect them?
3. How many heaters are needed for as average sized house and family in the okanagan?
4. What is the life time of a system?
5. What are some ways of improving systems to make them more efficient?