solar water heater - SOLAR COLLECTORS

This type of collector is located in individual glass tubes. These tubes are rigged in parallel to make up the collector. When the tubes are exposed to high temperatures, the air inside them is forced out or evacuated. This evacuation of the air creates a vacuum effect and it is this vacuum effect that makes the tubes good insulators. This vacuum effect keeps the water inside the tube hot, while leaving the outside cool. Heat pipes have a singular layer of glass whereas evacuated tubes have a double layer of glass.

A flat-plate collector consists of a cover made of toughened glass, an absorber plate, a tube system that removes the absorbed heat to the tank and a waterproof casing. Flat-plate collectors have a good price-performance ratio.

SOLAR COLLECTORS

There are two main types of solar collectors, i.e. flat plate collectors or tube collectors. Both variants are available in direct and indirect, pumped and natural convection applications.