New Solar System for Pool Now on Market
QUESTION: My regular swimming pool heater is very expensive to operate. I would rather use a solar system, but I don’t like the appearance of collectors on my roof. Is there anything new, and what options do I have?
ANSWER: There are several new types of swimming pool solar systems that will not detract from the appearance of your home. Since they operate at a relatively low water temperature, they don’t need all the insulation and glass covers of other types of solar collectors.
Depending on its size, a solar system can add from several months additional use to year-round use of your pool. In warm climates, where summertime overheating is a problem, you can operate the system at night to cool the swimming pool water.
There is a new type of indirect solar system for swimming pools that is mounted inside your attic. It draws heat from the hot attic air to warm the pool water. By drawing its heat from the attic air, the attic stays cooler and your air conditioning costs may be reduced.
The swimming pool water is circulated through a special air-to-water heat exchanger in the attic. A small fan draws the hot attic air through the heat exchanger heating the pool water. You can install temperature sensors in your attic to automatically divert the pool water through the heat exchanger when it gets hot enough.
There are several types of very thin black plastic solar collectors that can be mounted either on a rack on the ground or flat against your roof. Since these are thin and black, they are difficult to see from the ground.
One type uses many quarter-inch diameter black plastic tubes spaced about one-half inch. They are connected between larger plastic headers on each end. They can be separate or connected by a thin black web. The sun’s rays that don’t strike each tube directly tend to get trapped between the tubes and eventually absorbed into the pool water.
Another simple solar system uses rolls of flexible black plastic material with many water channel formed in it. Lay it on your roof and it conforms closely to the surface. There is even a small solar system kit for anabove-ground pool that you roll up and store in your garage during the winter.
These swimming pool solar systems are easy to install yourself. Many are available in kits with all necessary hardware, controls, supports, etc. The plumbing is not very sophisticated since these solar systems utilize your existing pump and filter systems.
You can also install an automatic solar sensor that circulates the water through the collector only when there’s enough sun to heat the water.
You can write to me for Utility Bills Update No. 226, showing a list of manufacturers of the various types of do-it-yourself swimming pool solar system kits and detailed information and specifications for each. Please include $1 and a self-addressed business-sized envelope. Send your requests to James Dulley, c/o Los Angeles Times, 6906 Royalgreen Drive, Cincinnati, Ohio 45244.
Stolen Energy Ups Rates for Payers
Q: I was wondering about how much energy is stolen from utility companies, and does that really raise our utility rates?
A: On a national average, about 1% to 2% of the total energy produced by utility companies is stolen. Utility rates are usually based on return on investment, so the many honest bill-paying consumers are picking up the tab, not the stockholders.
This amounts to a lot of money. For example, the Cincinnati Gas & Electric Co. estimates theft costs its customers many millions of dollars each year. It is also extremely dangerous to tamper with an electric meter.
Letters and questions to Dulley, a Cincinnati-based engineering consultant, may be sent to James Dulley, Los Angeles Times, 6906 Royalgreen Drive, Cincinnati, Ohio 45244.
