Solar Panels - best use of them?

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fitzie79

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i am installing solar panels in my new build and want to maximise the benefit of them as they are very expensive. What can i do in order to achieve this? It has been suggested that I don't install an electric shower in the en-suite but that i have it fed from the hot water tank (and possibly have a pump to increase the pressure). This seems to make sense (unless I am missing something) as in the winter then the solar panel is doing little then there will be hot water from the central heating and in the summer the solar panels should provide the heat. I will still probably put an electric shower into the main bathroom as a backup.

Is there anything else that the solar panels can be set up for besides giving hot water to the taps? I know little about plumbing so not sure if washing machine/dishwasher is fed from mains or hot water?
 
fitzie79 said:
Is there anything else that the solar panels can be set up for besides giving hot water to the taps? I know little about plumbing so not sure if washing machine/dishwasher is fed from mains or hot water?
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I have the same plan as you. I plan on sending hot water to dishwasher and wash-mach (I will limit it to 35 degrees to avoid destroying woollens).

I will be interested to hear what the experts have to say about your ideas.
 
Water connection mode is important for a dishwasher:

  • Cold water connection will use the least energy - the dishwasher heats its own water only for the parts of the cycle where hot water is needed, but the energy (in the form of electricity) generally costs more (unless you are on a time of use tariff, which is still unusual for households, and run the machine overnight).
  • If you have a gas or solar hot water system, models that can be connected to both hot and cold water will save carbon dioxide and operating costs, but models with dual connection are now rare. You will also save energy costs if you have an off peak electric hot water system.
  • A dishwasher connected only to hot water will use the most energy, although it may be marginally more economical if you have off peak electric, solar or mains gas hot water.
Taken from this webpage: www.energyrating.gov.au/dwl.html
 
DavyJones said:
Water connection mode is important for a dishwasher:

  • A dishwasher connected only to hot water will use the most energy, although it may be marginally more economical if you have off peak electric, solar or mains gas hot water.
Taken from this webpage: [broken link removed]
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Good points....

I will have a solid fuel range with a plentiful supply of wood so hot water in winter will be a given for me. In summer I have 3 panels heating water, with the range occasionally in use also. So again I will have plenty hot water.

I will have cold and hot water delivered to the back of the dishwasher. I will experiment with the system and see how best to organise it.
 
Seemingly this ES therm crowd have a CPC tube system with a reflective foil that gives more sunlight coverage on the panel claims that on the worst day you should heat the water to close to 20 deg C i.e about 18-19.
 
fitzie79 said:
...... as in the winter then the solar panel is doing little then there will be hot water from the central heating and in the summer the solar panels should provide the heat. I will still probably put an electric shower into the main bathroom as a backup.
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Fwiw, you're solar panels only require daylight to work, not sunshine, so even in winter they will provide some hot water.

Your panels are not connect to any individual devices at all - it's connected to your DHW tank. What you connect to your tank is entirely up to yourself.

As someone has pointed out, and as I found out myself, dual supply appliances are now getting rare..........so may be a moot point.

As for electric shower - if you do this, you might as well not put in the panels at all - you're completely defeating the purpose of a (pumped) system, with a good dhw with solar backup........ it's analagous to buying an electric car, but having a portable generator in the boot, just in case ..!!
 
We have pumped showers in the 3 ensuites coming from the hwt and 1 electric shower in the main bathroom which very rarely gets used. It's purely as a backup in case there's no hot water in the tank in the winter. From March to October we didn't have to put on the central heating once to heat the water. We had a constant supply of hot water from the solar panels. Even on cloudy days you'll still get plenty of hot water. The panels are the best thing we did when we built the house.
 
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