PREFACE
Let us first offer two words of grateful apprecia-
tion. Thank You! We sincerely appreciate your
business. SunEarth also wishes to say thank you
for "going solar". Solar water heating systems
help to reduce our nation’s dependence on pol-
luting fossil fuels, minimize the greenhouse gas
emissions associated with conventional water
heating and, very importantly, lower your month-
ly utility costs.
Established in 1978, SunEarth is a leading U.S.
solar equipment manufacturer. Our products
include industry standard Imperial
TM
and Empire
TM
solar water heating collectors, CopperHeart
TM
integral collector storage systems, SunSiphon
TM
packaged thermosiphon systems, SunBurst
TM
all
copper absorber plates, and Solar Strut
TM
mount-
ing hardware. We also build specialty collectors
for unique architectural and building applica-
tions. SunEarth SRCC OG-300 certified solar
water heating systems are sold by leading solar,
plumbing and building contractors throughout
the United States.
Your SolaRay solar water heating system has
been designed to meet exacting SRCC OG-300
certification requirements. The components
found in your system have been selected by your
installation contractor for their proven reliability,
longevity and performance in your specific region
of the country.
1) INTRODUCTION
Solar water heating systems are climate and site
specific appliances. Different types of solar sys-
tems are installed around the world in accor-
dance with regional weather and water quality
conditions. System performance varies as a func-
tion of the household hot water load, including
daily showers, laundry and kitchen uses, average
ground water and ambient air temperatures, the
home’s roof pitch and orientation, and, of
course, the seasonal intensity of solar radiation.
These variables, some of which change from
home to home on the same neighborhood
street, will determine how much energy and
money your SolaRay system will save on an annu-
al basis.
Your SolaRay solar system is known as a "forced
circulation" system because it utilizes a mechan-
ical pump to efficiently circulate the Dow
Chemical Dowfrost HD propylene glycol heat
transfer fluid (HTF) throughout the system. The
HTF protects the collector piping from freezing
and inhibits scaling deposits that can reduce per-
formance in "open-loop" systems utilizing
potable water as the HTF. Proper application and
maintenance of the HTF can protect your Solaray
solar water heating system to minus 60°
Fahrenheit.
This manual is intended as a basic solar water
heating primer. Our goal is to familiarize you
with the proper installation, operation, and main-
tenance of your SolaRay solar system. This sys-
tem is required to be installed by properly
licensed solar or plumbing contractors in accor-
dance with SRCC Standard OG-300 and all appli-
cable national, state and local codes, ordinances
and regulations governing solar water heating
installations, as well as good trade practices.
Failure to follow the procedures and practices
described in this manual can void the manufac-
turer's warranty for specific component parts.
This manual covers installations utilizing one or
two SunEarth solar collectors with a single solar
storage tank and also two tank systems that
include a solar storage tank and a conventional
water heater. For simplicity, the singular form
will be used throughout this manual when refer-
ring to all of these components and system per-
mutations. Frequent reference is made through-
out this manual to specific component parts. The
placement of each component can be seen in
system schematic figures 15 and 16. A descrip-
tion of each component and its function is found
in Section 10.
2) SYSTEM DESCRIPTION AND OPERATIONAL
PRINCIPLE
The key components in the SolaRay solar water
heating system include the SunEarth solar collec-
tor, solar storage tank with integral heat
exchanger, photovoltaic solar electric module, 12
volt DC circulation pump, expansion tank, pres-
sure gauge, mixing valve and the non-toxic
propylene glycol heat transfer fluid (HTF).
The SunEarth solar collector is the heart of the
SolaRay system. Simply stated, when the sun is
shinning, heat energy is absorbed by the solar
collector’s all copper absorber plate and trans-
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