Suburban Solar Hot Water

Residential - December 2006

Heating domestic water from the sun is very empowering. It is comforting to know my roof is the source of our hot water.

Quick Facts

Average Annual Savings

$800

Energy Needs Met

100%

or more of hot water

Net Investment

$5,000

Return on Investment

16%

Property

Owner:: Christian Grieco
Type:: Residential
Address:: 71 Henderson Rd., Glenmont, NY 12077
Size:: 2,100 sq ft
Energy need met:: 100% or more of hot water
Event Participation:: NESEA Green Buildings Open House 2013 Host

Technology

Type:: Solar Hot Water
Installed:: December 2006
Size of System:: 2 collectors
Purposes:: To heat hot water

Financial Details

Gross Cost of System:: $10,000
Value of Rebates:: $3,000
Value of Tax Credits:: $2,000
Net Cost of System:: $5,000
Annual Savings:: $800
Own or Lease:: Cash Purchase
Additional Financial Notes:: Used home equity line of credit to invest in free resource to heat domestic hot water 100% for most of summer and much less in winter months. Solar covers most hot water from March through September.

Professionals & Suppliers

Products:: Heliodyne Inc

What You Need to Know

Description:

(2) Heliodyne solar thermal collectors in a closed loop system heating 80 gallon tank. Recently installed an OHM solar thermal monitoring system that is online but a login is required to access data

Maintenance Requirements:

Need to check PH of glycol every few years and make sure the pressure in the system is at or around 50 PSI.

Efficiency or Sustainability Improvements:

solar PV on demand water heater passive solar renovation plug in hybrid cars energy star rated appliances replaced fiberglass insulation with blown foam soapstone woodstove as primary heat in winter

My Motivation:

wanting to go beyond just solar electricity as the only form of renewable energy in the house. Cutting natural gas usage and carbon creation

Advice:

get a monitoring system, like the OHM, so you can see the usage in realtime. One has not way of knowing how well the system is operating without a monitoring system

Experience with Installer:

The panels were installed by GroSolar techs. The rest of the system was installed by a third party plumber that was one hour away. The plumber used my hard tap water to "charge" the system. Tap water is NOT supposed to be used if the water is hard.

Additional Notes:

The Radiant Store maintains the system for me now. Terry Hoag provided and installed the OHM monitoring system. The system requires a login so it is not publiclly accessible. I will have the system connected to a TV to show folks that arrive for the tour. "Backup" hot water is provided by an on demand Takagi natural ggas unit.

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