Solar Thermal Engineering vs. Conventional Mechanical Engineering
Solar thermal design deals with the total energy usage in a system. Since we have no control over sunshine, and we can’t turn the “burner” on when we need more, we must deal with gathering what is available on a given day, and introducing that energy into the load…
September’s Solar Thermal Webinar Is Now Available
As the military continues to increase their interest in robust solar thermal technology, the time-tested principals of the drain back design are becoming more and more appealing. Since I’m scheduled to give another presentation to the Army Corps of Engineers tomorrow, I thought followers of my blog might find it interesting to see what I shared with military engineers last time…
Military Prefers Non-pressurized Solar Thermal Systems
The military has asked me to provide their engineers with regular webinars describing the advantages of non-pressurized (drain back) solar thermal systems over pressurized (glycol) systems. This is a good thing. The military has recognized the benefits of low maintenance and lower cost associated with the drain back design.
August’s Solar Thermal Webinar Is Now Available…
“Which design is better? Single-tank or double-tank systems?” That was the topic of today’s webinar. Listen to this discussion as well as several other important subjects related to solar thermal design and installation. If you’d like for us to email to you any of the images in this webinar, just let us know.
Recent residential installations…
Last week we shipped out two residential solar storage tank systems. The first 130 gallon tank system was installed by our friends at Sustainable Energy Solutions out of Charleston. The other tank, 80 gallons, was installed by our friends at Asheville Solar Company. We’re looking forward to seeing more residential installations soon!
July’s Solar Thermal Webinar Recording Is Now Available
You can catch the replay right here!
Monitoring data, proper sensor placement, and flow meter expectations…
June’s Solar Thermal Webinar Recording Is Now Available
You can catch the replay right here!
Double wall heat exchangers, variable speed pumps, proper piping slope, and lots of coughing!
Solar Thermal Monitoring Program Makes Progress
I thought I would give you a preview of the solar thermal monitoring program I’ve been working on lately. To the right is a screen shot of one day’s data…
Upgrading the Flow Sensor at Duke University
We went back out to visit our solar hot water system at Duke University this week. One of the major objectives of this trip was to swap out the original 2″ Btu meter with a 1.5″ Btu meter. This is because the larger meter was not as sensitive as the smaller one…
In Case You Missed May’s Solar Thermal Webinar…
You can catch the replay right here!
Galvanic corrosion, solar radiant floors, unglazed collectors, and much more…