Sun-powered Hot Water for your Home

Harnessing the sun's energy to heat water is a technology that Marie-Jose Croonen used to demonstrate in her native Holland. But it wasn't until her family moved to Canada that she actually got to install her own system.

In 2005, Croonen and her husband hired Calgary-based Sedmek Inc. to retrofit a solar domestic hot water system on the roof of their two-storey home on the outskirts of the city.

"We did it because we believe in it," says Croonen, a business development manager. "It has worked extremely well, reduced our overall energy costs and we're doing something for the environment."

Croonen paid over $6,000 for a three-solar collector system that provides most of the hot water for the five people who live in her home. Solar hot water, coupled with exterior window shutters, has led to a significant reduction in the family's natural gas needs, she estimates.

Croonen is one of a small, but growing number of Albertans turning to the renewable energy of sunlight to supplement their household heating, while saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. And with the federal government's recent announcement of a $500 subsidy for approved solar hot water systems, there may be increasing demand for this technology.

The return on investment for solar domestic water heating systems is significantly better than investments in photovoltaic technology.

"This is a wonderful, cheap way for people to get involved in solar technology," says Gordon Howell, an Edmonton engineer who specializes in solar energy systems.

In Alberta, a typical system consists of two solar collectors installed on a south-facing roof, one or two pumps, piping, a controller, heat exchanger and solar tank, all of which transfer solar heat from the collectors to your household water supply.

With a two-collector system, you can depend on the sun to provide about 55 per cent of your domestic hot water heating. A back-up natural gas or electric system is always required to top up the water temperature in the winter.

David Kelly, president of Sedmek, says his company installed about 70 systems last year, with an average price of $4,500 for a two-person household to $5,800 for four people.

An Edmonton company, Trimline Design Centre, is starting to offer training workshops for people interested in installing solar heating systems themselves.

"The mechanically-minded person who doesn't mind climbing a ladder and putting a 100-pound collector on his roof will find these workshops handy," says Trimline owner Harold Verburg. Maintenance is seldom needed if designed and installed correctly.

Gordon Howell suggests that prospective buyers seek quotes and references from reputable designers, suppliers and installers who belong to the Canadian Solar Industry Association.