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By: Adrian Fletcher
Solar power water heater systems are a way to save money on your utility bills (heating water is usually one of the most costly uses of electricity or gas) so should you install a system or not. This article will ask if it makes sense economically for the home owner to install a solar water heating system. Solar power water heater systems are usually used in conjunction with the existing hot water system. They consist of a method of collecting thermal rays from the sun. They use a solar collector that can simply be a water container that has added features to absorb the sun's heat or a length of tubing that also has sun absorbing features added to it. Water is moved past the flat plate collector or through the tubing. The will heat the water that is then pumped into the home plumbing, water tank or boiler. So traditional utility supplied energy usage is reduced when it comes to heating water as the water has been already heated by the solar system. This will save on utility bills but will it save enough money to justify the time and expense required to install a solar water system in the first place ? To start with, you should look into your existing hot water system. Saving money is not only about looking at free sources of energy but making your use of energy as efficient as possible. You should consider installing the latest energy saving boiler and get proper lagging to insulate the tank. The boiler should be the right size for your hot water needs. An over sized boiler will cost more over time. With this established you can then consider the viability of a solar water heater system. There are five things that should be factored into your thinking : How much hot water is used by your family annually - You would probably have to average this out from a month or a few months rather than recording the whole year. However, you expect to use more hot water during the winter so factor this into your calculations. When will the heated water be used - The solar water system will work better when the sun is hottest, generally midday. How compatible the current heating system is with a solar powered heating system - How easy will it be to hook the two systems up. What will a solar power water heater system cost - this really depends on the size of the system which is dependent on your usage of hot water. However, prices of solar water systems should drop in future as more emphasis is placed on renewable or free energy sources. The cost of the fuel you are currently using now and in the future - this seems clearcut but hard to quantify. Existing fuels like coal and gas will continue to go up in price as they become harder to find and extract. This argument forms the basis for the increased attention and championing of many renewable energy sources, including solar energy. So it seems to make economic sense to install a solar water system in the future or even planning for the future but it is impossible to quantify the savings. What about the present though ? If you research solar power heat systems you will be given figures on the likely amount of energy that they can save. By factoring this into your annual energy usage you will arrive at the amount that can be saved on your monthly bills.
Article Source: http://www.articlenorth.com
For more details on solar power water heater systems and information on solar powered landscape lighting visit solarpowerappliances.com.
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