With solar thermal energy, you have an excess in summer and don’t really need the heat for heating support anyway; in autumn and winter, you have too little or none at all.
With my old solar system, on good summer days I have to cool down my 300-liter (79-gallon) storage tank overnight through the collectors, essentially wasting energy. This means that even with a large buffer storage tank, you have an abundance of heat for heating support in midsummer when it is not needed. In autumn and winter, you can hardly expect any heat output from the solar system and thus from the buffer storage.
My recommendation is to consider photovoltaics and a battery storage system. Tesla, Bosch, and others are working intensively to develop powerful, affordable home battery storage solutions and bring them to market.
With photovoltaics, you benefit all year round.
With my old solar system, on good summer days I have to cool down my 300-liter (79-gallon) storage tank overnight through the collectors, essentially wasting energy. This means that even with a large buffer storage tank, you have an abundance of heat for heating support in midsummer when it is not needed. In autumn and winter, you can hardly expect any heat output from the solar system and thus from the buffer storage.
My recommendation is to consider photovoltaics and a battery storage system. Tesla, Bosch, and others are working intensively to develop powerful, affordable home battery storage solutions and bring them to market.
With photovoltaics, you benefit all year round.
Kerstin2 schrieb:
Hello, we are currently planning our new build. We are choosing a gas heating system with solar support for domestic hot water. Would you also consider solar support for space heating?
Would you also connect a hydronic fireplace?I missed this question.
Next spring or summer, I plan to treat myself to a fireplace or a hydronic fireplace. As someone from the HVAC field, I believe a hydronic fireplace with a buffer tank is worth it for me because I can get the components at a good price through trade channels and install them myself. In your case, I would recommend having the project calculated and planned by a heating/fireplace specialist, and then make your decision.
E
ErikErdgas19 Nov 2015 14:13Hello,
When choosing a solar thermal system, it should be used both for heating support and for domestic hot water production. It is true that unfortunately the sun shines most intensely during the summer, when heating is not needed, and vice versa. However, there is still a demand for hot water in summer, which the solar thermal system can cover, so the heating system can remain off and does not need to be turned on for hot water generation (saves energy).
When the first cold days arrive or the average temperature drops, the heating support can delay the point at which the heating system must be activated (saves energy). Eventually, it will become so cold that the heating system has to run, but even on sunny days, the solar thermal system can preheat the heating water so that the heating system does not have to heat the water as much; the same applies to hot water. The problem in winter is that the sun shines fewer hours and less frequently. The solution is to maximize the yield from the limited sunshine by installing a larger collector array and buffering the collected heat in storage tanks of appropriate size.
Therefore, do not just install the legally required system size on the roof, but an adequately sized system. A mechanical engineer specialized in building services engineering or an energy consultant can provide support here. The additional cost for x sqm (x sq ft) more collector area is minor in relation to the total investment.
Best regards, Erik
When choosing a solar thermal system, it should be used both for heating support and for domestic hot water production. It is true that unfortunately the sun shines most intensely during the summer, when heating is not needed, and vice versa. However, there is still a demand for hot water in summer, which the solar thermal system can cover, so the heating system can remain off and does not need to be turned on for hot water generation (saves energy).
When the first cold days arrive or the average temperature drops, the heating support can delay the point at which the heating system must be activated (saves energy). Eventually, it will become so cold that the heating system has to run, but even on sunny days, the solar thermal system can preheat the heating water so that the heating system does not have to heat the water as much; the same applies to hot water. The problem in winter is that the sun shines fewer hours and less frequently. The solution is to maximize the yield from the limited sunshine by installing a larger collector array and buffering the collected heat in storage tanks of appropriate size.
Therefore, do not just install the legally required system size on the roof, but an adequately sized system. A mechanical engineer specialized in building services engineering or an energy consultant can provide support here. The additional cost for x sqm (x sq ft) more collector area is minor in relation to the total investment.
Best regards, Erik
Just keep in mind that the investment costs for a large system with heating support can never be recouped by the savings during the transitional seasons, and in summer, the legally required size without heating support is sufficient.
A modern heating system shouldn’t simply cost as much as possible and be a nightmare in terms of controls… but rather the exact opposite… oh, and it should also be economical… which unfortunately rules out heating support through solar thermal systems right away…
Best regards, Realist
A modern heating system shouldn’t simply cost as much as possible and be a nightmare in terms of controls… but rather the exact opposite… oh, and it should also be economical… which unfortunately rules out heating support through solar thermal systems right away…
Best regards, Realist
Similar topics