Solar Water Heating for Pools

Heating your swimming pool using conventional heating methods can be a costly affair, Pool with the cost rising as the size of the pool increases. Solar water heating for swimming pools is a cheap clean renewable alternative to conventional methods of heating a swimming pool with the added benefit of helping the environment.

The solar water heating systems are similar to that of the normal solar cells, only the collectors are made from plastic for weather durability. Construction is made up of large headers on the top and bottom which are connected by a number of tubes. The size of the collectors depends on how big the swimming pool is and the required water temperature.

Generally the size of the solar collectors or Solar Panels is half the size of the surface area of the swimming pool. For example, if a pool surface area is 300 square feet, the solar collectors will be normally 150 square feet in size.

An effective hot water system for Swimming Pools

If required however it is possible to construct a collector the same size as the surface area of the pool. A Solar water heating system for a swimming pool will operate at an optimum capacity when facing in a southerly direction to achieve maximum solar energy.

A tilt is also required of 10-15 degrees latitude. However if it is not permissible to point south due to pool orientation and must face west for instance, the size of the collector will have to be increased to offset the collector not receiving the maximum efficiency from a southerly direction.

It is sometimes required to place the solar water heating system for a pool on the ground due to the size of collector required. Swimming pool collectors are constructed in an optimal area surrounding the pool. Indoor pool requirements differ slightly as the collectors need to be sloped between 35-45 degrees and are made from the material found in domestic solar collectors. It is also advised to purchase a swimming pool cover for your pool.

A swimming pool cover prevents heat loss by minimizing evaporation. The Solar water heating system is connected to the regular filter system installed in the pool.

The solar water heating for the swimming pool operates similar to that of solar collectors found on domestic housing. The water is pumped through the collectors and then the heated water is returned back to the pool in a rotation system.

A basic Control system is operated by the homeowner to control the temperature requirements of the solar water heating system.