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Conklin, NY 13748 USA
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Page 20 of 47
At last fasten all the screws.
5.3.4 Solar water heater installation and attention
This STEP requires you to locate your hot water heater. The collector should face
approximately South (plus or minus 20°). Use a declination value from a map or
declination table to determine the direction of true South from the compass reading.
The collector should be tilted at the latitude angle plus 15° for best winter operation
and latitude minus 15
o
for best summer performance. Tilt at latitude for best year
round performance.
A good GPS will also provide accurate compass headings and your exact latitude. If
you do not have a compass or GPS, wait until solar noon and the shadow of a vertical
stick or surface will point due North. True South is 180° from true North. HINT:
MANY SOLAR SYSTEMS ARE PLACED AT THE ROOF SLOPE WHICH IS
LESS THAN LATITUDE MINUS 15°, BUT IS MORE AESTHETICALLY
PLEASING, WITH ONLY A SMALL 10% PENALTY IN ANNUAL
PERFORMANCE.
The latitude of your location can be found on the Internet or in your local paper. The
latitudes of some selected U.S. cities are presented in Table 5-1 for reference. (HINT:
Look at other solar collectors in your area, see how they are oriented to South and
elevated for latitude) .The report includes a solar sitting template to show the effects
of shadowing from trees or nearby buildings, declination map and other useful
information about system sitting.
