You get what you pay for!
You have no doubt heard the politicians trying to talk the price down. All that this has achieved is to kill the New Zealand solar water heating market while the public waits for prices to drop. The price will only drop if the product is cheap junk. After years of research, including on-the-roof inspections of dozens of installations, I have come to the conclusion that the only way to go is to go for quality. In a competitive market, that means you get what you pay for!
If you are looking for a solar water heating system that will give you trouble-free operation year after year, then you have to go for quality. There is simply no other option. Don't believe me? Then go and spend an hour reading my other website that blew the whistle on rusting solar water heaters in New Zealand: www.rustypanels.co.nz
We have decided to go with the Swiss designed and Swiss made AMK OPC 10 solar water heating system. This is on the basis of the quality of the materials, the advanced technologies employed and the years of their successful operation under harsh European climatic conditions. While it is not the cheapest on the market, it is not the most expensive. What is not left to doubt is the quality of the design and materials.
Which Solar Water Heating System is best for you?
While we have a new AMK evacuated tube system which we are delighted with, I am not going to tell you to install one of these in preference to anything else. Research the industry carefully, perhaps using the AMK as your reference point for quality of materials and installation and consider what kind of ongoing servicing capacity is available to you by the suppliers.
Don't overlook the Storage Tank, Pumping and Control Systems
Solar water heating systems require a quality storage tank that is capable of handling for many, many years the high temperatures and heat fluctuations of solar water heating systems. While the system you go with might look really flash on your rooftop, of equal importance is the quality of the pumping and control system. You need a system that has failsafe systems built in, including sensors that vary pumping speed. This is most important with an evacuated tube system. Again, have a close look at the AMK system as your reference point. For more information, please go to the AMK Solar Water Heating site here.
Flat Panel or Evacuated Tube System?
Both systems have their merits which seem to finally add up to being about equal. The one thing I am attracted to about quality solar tubes (Keep clear of the cheap stuff!) is the ease of replacing a tube if it fails. If a large flat panel fails, you have serious problems with replacing the whole heavy thing as compared to a single lightweight tube. Not to mention the arguments you can get into with the supplier if the whole panel fails (Don't believe me? Then go to RustyPanels.co.nz and get a shock)
Open or closed loop system?
After my painful experiences with an open loop Solar 60 system, I am now convinced that a solar water heating system must be a closed loop system. While this is more expensive, due to the special liquid and heat exchange system, the closed loop system will suffer next to no internal corrosion and scale buildup which can cause a progressive loss of performance. Don't believe it? Then take a look at the following two photos of the internal pipework taken from my four year old "open" Sola60 that is now landfill:
Windows Live Spaces
MY WEBSITE PAGES:
You have no doubt heard the politicians trying to talk the price down. All that this has achieved is to kill the New Zealand solar water heating market while the public waits for prices to drop. The price will only drop if the product is cheap junk. After years of research, including on-the-roof inspections of dozens of installations, I have come to the conclusion that the only way to go is to go for quality. In a competitive market, that means you get what you pay for!
If you are looking for a solar water heating system that will give you trouble-free operation year after year, then you have to go for quality. There is simply no other option. Don't believe me? Then go and spend an hour reading my other website that blew the whistle on rusting solar water heaters in New Zealand: www.rustypanels.co.nz
We have decided to go with the Swiss designed and Swiss made AMK OPC 10 solar water heating system. This is on the basis of the quality of the materials, the advanced technologies employed and the years of their successful operation under harsh European climatic conditions. While it is not the cheapest on the market, it is not the most expensive. What is not left to doubt is the quality of the design and materials.Which Solar Water Heating System is best for you?
While we have a new AMK evacuated tube system which we are delighted with, I am not going to tell you to install one of these in preference to anything else. Research the industry carefully, perhaps using the AMK as your reference point for quality of materials and installation and consider what kind of ongoing servicing capacity is available to you by the suppliers.
Don't overlook the Storage Tank, Pumping and Control Systems
Solar water heating systems require a quality storage tank that is capable of handling for many, many years the high temperatures and heat fluctuations of solar water heating systems. While the system you go with might look really flash on your rooftop, of equal importance is the quality of the pumping and control system. You need a system that has failsafe systems built in, including sensors that vary pumping speed. This is most important with an evacuated tube system. Again, have a close look at the AMK system as your reference point. For more information, please go to the AMK Solar Water Heating site here.
Flat Panel or Evacuated Tube System?
Both systems have their merits which seem to finally add up to being about equal. The one thing I am attracted to about quality solar tubes (Keep clear of the cheap stuff!) is the ease of replacing a tube if it fails. If a large flat panel fails, you have serious problems with replacing the whole heavy thing as compared to a single lightweight tube. Not to mention the arguments you can get into with the supplier if the whole panel fails (Don't believe me? Then go to RustyPanels.co.nz and get a shock)
Open or closed loop system?
After my painful experiences with an open loop Solar 60 system, I am now convinced that a solar water heating system must be a closed loop system. While this is more expensive, due to the special liquid and heat exchange system, the closed loop system will suffer next to no internal corrosion and scale buildup which can cause a progressive loss of performance. Don't believe it? Then take a look at the following two photos of the internal pipework taken from my four year old "open" Sola60 that is now landfill:
Windows Live Spaces
MY WEBSITE PAGES:
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