They have been revolutionizing green energy sources for decades in many countries including Australia and some European and Asian countries and are transforming the way hot water are produced before our very eyes. Solar hot water system are composed of a tank lined up in a horizontal fashion for a no pump system together with a solar heat collector lined up with water tubes where they are directly heated by the amplified heat from the panels and are then stored to the tank directly above it. No water pumps are required to store the heated into the tank, or otherwise you'll be using more energy from the electrical grid just to store it than to use hot water systems in your bathroom, then the whole idea would be futile. The water is stored by way of thermo siphon. It can be compared to air. Warm air rises and cool air settles at the bottom. Much like why hot air balloons float. Heated water naturally rises in the system for storage and pushes colder water back in the collector's tubes for heating. Basically , the installation is quite similar to any other systems of the same category. The heat collector must be placed directly where the sun shines the most and any obstruction must be minimized or if possible must be removed. At a perfect condition, the systems can provide descent amounts of hot water daily. However, in some cases you might need to use conventional heating systems (gas or electric powered heaters) during winter and rainy season when solar heat might not be sufficient to deliver a consistent flow of hot water in which case it requires an auxiliary energy source connected to the system. This auxiliary system only activates when the heat of the sun is not sufficient for the continuous flow of hot water. Evacuated tubes are one of the most popular choices of this kind of system, although it's more expensive than a traditional flat system. Evacuated tubes systems are a set of glass tubes each lined with their own heat absorbing plate. The idea of the system work by trapping and amplifying heat through a vacuum that is present between the inner and outer shell tubes. The contour of the glass also allows this system to collect sunlight in a wider range; it can collect the heat coming from almost all angles therefore minimizing the use of auxiliary systems.Industrial applications of the system are on its way, in areas where a hot climate is present this simple technology can used to produce electricity by way of steam.Truly the possibility of solar energy knows no boundaries. In the future, who knows we just might face out fossil fuels and put an end to our pursuit of clean and renewable energy.
