Installing and Operating a Solar Swimming Pool Heater

Key points to observe when connecting your solar panels

1. The panels should be facing south
2. Use flexible connectors when joining panels
3. The panels should not be subjected to high pressure
4. The panels should NOT be filled with water when hot

Panel Orientation

Facing the panels due south will give the best results. The angle of the panel frame is not too critical, however low angles will give better performance in summer and high angles will give better performance in winter.

Joining panels

To prevent damage caused by shifting and settling, it is important to join panels using a flexible connection. Panels may be connected in series or in parallel. Series is the simplest.

Operating Pressure

The panels must be operated at low pressure. We have found that connecting the supply line to the panels AFTER the filter works. The return line can be connected after the heater. Shut off valves should be installed in the pump house on both the supply and return lines. For short runs, 1/2 inch polyethylene pipe should be sufficient. If you have very long runs between the pool and the panels, ¾ inch may be needed.

pool, a flow of 10 to 15 litres per minute is suggested. You may wish to install a throttling valve at the inlet to the bank of panels to reduce the flow rate if required.

Filling the panels

The inside of an empty tube in the solar panel will become VERY hot when exposed to the sun. For this reason it is CRITICAL that the tubes be filled only when they are cool or the glass may shatter.

A panel left full of water with no circulation will boil dry. This does not cause any harm, but if the flow is going to be shut down, provision should be made for the steam to escape. Pulling the pipe nipple from the end of the header will provide for this.

Working Principle of Vacuum Solar Tube

Collectors are the key component of Massloads Solar Water Heater. Each of them is configured by two concentric glass tubes with Thermal expansion 3.3x 10-6 °C, the outside surface of inner glass tube is coated, with the latest world magnetron sputtering Hi-Techs, layers of aluminum-nitrogen with aluminum base, which absorbs and converts the maximum amount (>0.92,80oc) of solar radiation including infra red light into heat, whilst having very small radiation losses(<0.09,80oc). The jacket between outer and inner glass tubes is evacuated and permanently sealed off to form the best possible insulation, which allows sunlight penetrate perfectly while preventing heat loss. In order to maintain the vacuum between the two glass layers, a barium getter (gas absorbent) is used inside the top end of the outer tube.

During manufacturing this getter is exposed shortly to high frequency magnetic fields, which create high temperatures in one second resulting in the bottom of the evacuated tube being coated with a pure layer of barium.

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