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How to Install a Solar Hot Water System

In case you are interested in reducing energy costs, installing a solar hot water system will save you money and is good for the environment. I did an install for a client that needed to heat 20,000 gallons of hot water. The client is very happy because the SolarBeam Concentrators raise his water temperature by 60 degrees and he has reduced his operating costs.

 

If anyone is curious how to install a solar hot water system. Take a look at the steps below.

1.      The solar hot water system should be installed at a south facing location. The dish needs to be placed in a location that is 20ft away from obstructions (i.e. trees, buildings, etc.)

 

2.      A hole 9 feet deep needs to be excavated for the foundation. (See figure A)

 

3.      24" diameter x 9' long concrete foundation needs to be installed. Install the concrete foundation with re-enforced rebar as per the attached drawing (Appendix A). The installation needs to meet local building codes. (Figure B)

 

4.      The position of the mounting bolt must align with 12 PM noon standard time.

 

5.      Fill the soil around the sauna tube and pour concrete. Allow concrete to set for 3 days. Alternative option is to use a pre-cast concrete foundation for immediate use.

 

6.      The trench between the foundation for the solar concentrator and entry point of the facility needs to be at least 4 feet deep and 2 feet wide. (Appendix B) (See Figure C)

 

7.      Install hot water energy transfer pipe between solar concentrator foundation and facility entry point. Install Insuplex pipe with quantity of two 1" O2 barrier pipe or equivalent insulated O2 barrier PEX pipe. Part # 136011-100

 

8.      Use specified fittings and procedure to install the hot water energy transfer pipe through concrete wall. (Appendix C) (See figure D)

 

9.      Install 2 cables of 4 pair 16 gauge twisted-pair wire through 1" PEX tube and place it in trench and connect to building and foundation for final installation connection.

 

10.  Fill trench with removed soil and prepare for pavement / asphalt according to customer and local road requirements.

 

Solar Concentrator Erection

1.      Ensure the hot water energy transfer pipe and PEX pipe that contains the communication wire is already through the post and access for the transfer pipe is available through the service hole on the side of the post. The communication and motor control cable should be wired through the center hole in the flange. The post will be erected by assistance of a small boom truck.

 

2.      The power train is installed to the top flange of the post with bolts provided. Notch in the top flange must match the direction of the mounting bolt (12 PM standard time). Chain is installed around the flange. Ensure communication and motor control cable is through center hole.

 

3.      Mount the hub to the power train and begin assembly of the radial beam to the hub. Use 3 bolts, 6 washers, and 3 nuts per beam. Install the outboard skirts on the end of the radial beam.

 

4.      Mount the provided 16 reflective petals to the radial beams. When installing the dish, use 1 bolt, 2 washers, and 1 nut per hole. Leave the petals loose at this time and continue installing the remaining petals.

 

5.      Install counter balance and actuator. (Call-out 1)

 

6.      Mount struts to prime feed strut angle located on outboard skirt. (Call-out 2)

 

7.      Mount solar collector box to struts. (Call-out 3)

 

8.      Fasten the 4" diameter protective shield to the strut. Feed supply and return pipe through protective shield. (Call-out 4)

 

9.      Connect the supply and return hose to the fittings on the solar collector.

 

10.  Attach the pipe to the fittings for supply and return on the side of the mounting post. (Call-out 5)

 

11.  Confirm the pipe is firmly connected to the supply and return fittings.

Heat Exchanger Installation

1.      Mount the heat exchanger kit on the wall and connect supply and return hot water pipe to indicated manifold.

 

2.      Fill the primary loop with 50% propylene glycol and 50% water. Ratio for antifreeze is good up to -25 degrees Celsius.

 

3.      Check for any leaks.

 

Electronics & Wiring Installation

1.      Control module is installed inside the facility. Motor and communication wires are connect to control module as labeled on the terminal blocks.

 

2.      Connect the GPS to the serial port of the control module.

 

3.      Motor and communication wires are connected to the labeled terminal blocks located in the sealed weather-proof box on the solar concentrator. Wires are connected to the terminal blocks.

 

4.      Connect temperature sensors to supply and return solar hot water pipes as well as the sensor for the collector. Connect the wires temperature sensors to the terminal blocks.

 

5.      Connect control module and circulating pump to UPS.

 

Calibration Procedure

Important: Protective eyewear MUST be worn when calibrating the solar concentrator due to the solar intensity on the collector.

 

1.      Ensure the control module control switch is set to manual mode.

2.      Adjustment of solar tracking is performed manually. Use the appropriate horizontal and vertical control switches to center the sun in the center of the collector. Turn on and then off the setup switch (switch #7) to start he setup See Appendix D for switch description.

3.      The reference position for the horizontal axis (Z position) is located by manually moving the dish by using the horizontal control switch until the display on the control module shows 60° Azimuth.
(Display: AZIM. +60)

4.      At this stage, the optical horizontal encoder located on the solar concentrator, will be manually moved until the control module LED light for input 06 is ON.

5.      The reference position for the vertical axis (Z position) is located by manually moving the dish by using the vertical control switch until the display on the control module shows 5° Altitude position.
(Display: ALT.   +05)

6.      Once the reference points for Horizontal & Vertical positions have been found, use the appropriate horizontal and vertical control switches to center the sun in the center of the collector. Turn on and then off the setup switch (switch #7) to complete the setup.

7.      To initialize auto-tracking, turn on "auto-run" switch (switch #6).

8.      The solar concentrator will now automatically track the sun.

 

 

About the Author

Here the author Julia Herniak concludes the article How to install Solar Hot Water and Solar Power, visit http://www.solartronenergy.com

 

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