First All-Polymer, Do-It-Yourself Solar Hot Water System

[jpak]

http://www.marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=211240

ORLANDO, FL -- (MARKET WIRE) -- February 07, 2007 -- FAFCO Inc., the oldest and largest producer of solar pool heating panels in the United States, announces the world's first lightweight, affordable, all-polymer, do-it-yourself solar hot water system designed to reduce water heating bills by up to 50%. Hot2o™ is the culmination of a ten-year collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy.

"The debut of Hot2o marks a significant milestone in the history of solar energy because of the technology, the potential savings to consumers worldwide and its ability to reduce the environmental impact associated with traditional energy sources," said Freeman A. Ford, CEO and co-founder of FAFCO Inc. "Over the last decade, FAFCO has worked collaboratively with the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory to develop a solar domestic hot water system that can be used by all markets in all geographies. It's lightweight, affordable and easy to install. It offers tremendous savings to homeowners."

The Hot2o solar hot water system replaces heavy, expensive, and difficult to ship glazed copper collectors with lightweight, inexpensive, and easy to ship polymer collectors. Hot2o is designed to work with any conventional residential hot water tank. The entire system fits in a single box and weighs less than 62 pounds. The system can be safely deployed on a roof by a single person using typical household tools. Unique self-locking connectors and flexible polymer tubing avoids sweated fittings and reduces installation time, difficulty, and leak risk. Homeowners can begin seeing a return on investment as soon as the system is installed. Hot2o pays for itself in less than five years, as compared to ten to twenty years with traditional glazed copper solar hot water systems.

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[Stuckinthebush]

1. Cool

I wonder how effective it is at heating the water. How long does it take to heat. Basically, what are the chances of a cold shower after all of the people in the house take one?

[phantom power]

3. it's really more of a pre-heater for your existing hot water heater.

So, whatever your hot water situation is now, this would, if anything, improve it.

[Stuckinthebush]

6. Ahhhh!

Well that is a good idea. Preheat the water using solar energy so that you don't have to use as much gas or electricity to heat your water.

Gotcha. Cool.

[havocmom]

2. WooHoo! Havocdad found a solar kit for electricity

All you need is a wrench and a friend to help you set the system on a concrete footing. You torque it down, plug it in and ... juice into your house!

Now this reasonably priced system to make water hot.

:woohoo: we be goin greener soon!

[jpak]

4. Was it a Bluelink system????

?????

http://www.bluelinksolar.net/fmain.html

[havocmom]

7. Yep, that'd be the one

Looks pretty do-able for the common person.
We put a heating system in for the house that was done pretty much the same - all components put together (baffles, valves, etc.) so all we did was hang the plumbing panels, hang the small boiler and hook up the pex tubing to the systems and radiators we hung in all the rooms. Wonderful system.

This looks even easier - no water lines to run with the pex!

Think he is seriously considering for the retirement casa.

By the way, PEX is something to consider for any water heat and /or plumbing rennovations in older homes. Nice not to have to deal with torches to soder in tight places where there is wood framing to worry about setting on fire ;) The PEX just cuts easy, slides on brass fittings and stays on with easy to apply crimp rings. So far, after a year, no leaks in either the heating system or the new water lines we ran to the faucets and such.

Very do-able.

Blue Link for solar looks like a great project! We love DYI systems. Makes it more likely the average homeowner can improve their systems.

[jpak]

8. Cooooool!!!!!1111 That's my favorite PV system

Cheap and DYI

(and manufactured in Maine too)

:)

[havocmom]

9. Love those Maine-i-acs!

Yankee can-do rocks. Havocdad is a New England boy.

[NMDemDist2]

5. i'm on board, but it doesn't say how much $$$ anywhere on the website

i have the perfect application for this unit except I have to check weight restrictions for my mobile home roof. but my H2O tank is in a small closet on the outside of the MH on the south side

this looks like a perfect option for me.....

[Porcupine]

11. Check the age of your existing water heater.

I just swapped out my mom's water heater. The unit was 10 years old in an area with moderate water hardness. The 40 gallon tank had at least 10 gallons of a calcuim precipitate gell wasn't coming out of the drain tube.

If your existing water heater is over five years old swap it out as you install one of these systems. Get the largest water heater you can fit into your available space.

The best option for those of you who are really handy would be to find an old electric water heater with bad electronics and a solid tank. Since you would just be using it for tankage, preferably in a garage, precipitate on the bottom of the tank wouldn't change your results much.

Installing a solar booster that is attatched to a water heater 1/3 full of precipitate doesn't help you much.

Check the date on your unit. Swap it out if over 5 years unless you know your water comes from a granite aquifer.

[yellowcanine]

10. Hook that baby up to a radiant heating system under the floors - now we are talking.