Using the sun to generate heat is a simple and efficient process.  Whether we use the sun to heat air or water it is simple to do and easy to understand.  What changes is the quality of the manufactured products as well as the quality of the system design and installation.

The pictures below show a flat plate collector, an evacuated tube collector, and a basic diagram of a solar hot water system.

Solar thermal collectors offer the ability to use the sun to provide a heating source for: domestic hot water, space heating, pool heating, and ice/snow melting applications.

The two main types of solar thermal collectors are flat plate collectors and evacuated tube collectors.  There are some significant differences between the two.

Evacuated Tube Collectors -

• Reach temperatures of approximately 180 (f).
• Individual tubes can be removed and replaced without shutting down the system

Flat Plate Collectors -

• Reach temperatures of approximately 145 (f)
• Approximately half the cost of evacuated tube collectors

Production of domestic hot water has a long history of successfully using the flat plate collectors coupled with an 80 to 100 gallon storage tank.