Browse Forums General Discussion 1 May 25, 2011 7:59 pm Today our builder rang and said that they have just realised that there is not enough room on our north faceing roof to install our solar HWS and it will have to go on the west side. She said that north is always best and west is always second. I want to know if west is ok. There are no two story houses around us and no large trees. would it still generate enough hotwater to be worth it? What happens if there is not enough sun, would it have an electric back up? Re: Solar Hot Water 3May 25, 2011 8:33 pm Hi Oceanus2 and thank you for the reply. I am in SE QLD. I just wonder how much better North is. Re: Solar Hot Water 4May 25, 2011 8:39 pm A lot of homes around us have west-facing solar panels for their HWS. They seem to have extra panels in most cases though - i.e. north-facing usually has one panel, and west-facing usually two. There are exceptions; we have two panels on our north-facing roof, but we have an extra-large sized HWS. Perhaps contact the manufacturer and ask them about the potential difference in costs? Re: Solar Hot Water 5May 25, 2011 10:04 pm You will lose between 15% to 25% efficiency The attached link will provide more information http://www.anewhouse.com.au/?p=391 The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: Solar Hot Water 6May 25, 2011 11:05 pm All the solar HWU providers I've dealt with in Perth have said that north-facing HWU's are actually overefficient, which is why west is an acceptable option. East facing can even be a possibility when north or west isn't. the sun master is the solar heating to "warm" the water in the tank the S26 is your hot water system which will heat the water (25 degrees?) so with both turned on you… 2 14073 I want to build a decking to the drawn shape outlined in black. The problem is how close can I build to the gas hot water unit? Will I be able to build around it and be… 0 20236 DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair Hi, I've got a brand new (2nd hand) Bosch Hydropower 16H tankless hot water heater. Since it was installed I have noticed it leaks a lot. I took the cover off and it looks… 0 24147 |