After a good bit of research, I finally decided to install a
solar water heater in the house. I had started to see signs of the water heater that was already about 20 years old (since they often have a life span of 15-20 years anyway). When I was in Australia last March, I noticed that most of the homes actually had a solar water heating system installed and being in a very sunny area of the country, it makes sense to use it. The local electric company is also looking to increase rates by 20-30% by the beginning of next year. I have 4 adults in my home and figure that heating the water is a fairly significant amount of my bill. A lot of the marketing estimates suggest that
I was fortunate in that even though most of my home is shaded by oak trees, the area directly above the water heater stays sunny most of the day and is already on the south side of the home. I researched many different units such as
Fafco,
SolaHart (made in Perth, which explains why I saw pretty much only this in Australia), and
Guardian. The
Fafco unit did not impress me at all since it seemed to be nothing more than the same tubes used for a pool heating system, yet very expensive at and estimate of $5,500. I had liked the
SolaHart and the simple
thermosiphon system, but being in hurricane prone Florida, I didn't want a unit that required the storage tank to be on the roof; also considering any additional structural support that might be required. It was also pretty expensive with only one local company installing it and at a quoted price of about $6,700. Ouch. One surprising thing was that few of the sales people with whom I spoke really seemed to understand their products and the associated nuances outside of the marketing materials. When I started asking about
Btu/ft² and how their product compares to others, they often had no clue as to what I meant, even though all products were rated at the
Florida Solar Energy Center.
I did quite a bit of calling around to get prices and found that the fluctuated quite a bit on even the same system, so it really does pay to research options. I settled on getting a Guardian (using a flat plate collector) system installed. Estimates were as high as $5,900 - 5,500, however I was able to find one at $4,500 before finally getting to
Advanced Solar Construction at $4,250. There is a federal tax credit for 30% of the installation cost, so after this year taxes are paid, I'd get a credit of $1,275 (lowering the out-of-pocket cost to $2,975). Florida is supposed to have a $500 refund available as well, but apparently the money for the program has been depleted for this year as well as next year, so all I can do is get on the list and hope it is eventually renewed, which would bring my install cost to ~$2,500. Getting a new water heater and installing it would have probably cost me at least $400, so overall my extra cost is about $2100. If I save on average $50 a month in my electric bill (though most marketing materials claim $20 per person per month) at just the current electrical rates, then it would take about 3.5 - 4 years to pay for itself. I tend to try to estimate worst case (part of my general pessimism), so I'm expecting on the outside just about a 5 year return period, but would of course be happy if it was less. Some estimate a 6-9 year return depending on location for soalr heating systems in general, so I'm pretty pleased with my deal. It may seem like a bit of money to spend at first, but right now it is a much better interest/return rate than I could get in any savings account or CD, plus I can feel good about reducing environmental impact. I really wish more people would look at overall cost of operating something other than just the initial purchase price.
On Friday the company came out to do the install. They removed the old 50 gallon water heater, installed a new, special 80 gallon tank, the solar collector on the roof, and did all the plumbing. Getting the large tank in place was a tight squeeze as the closet had just enough space to slide it in with not even an inch on either side to spare. I still have to install my own electrical outlet box to operate the pump since that wasn't part of the contract, but that is simple enough to do anyway. It took three guys most of the day to complete and I was fairly impressed with the work. It'll take a few days before I really learn the system and figure out how beneficial it may be, but so far I am pleased with it. I'm hoping that during the relative hotter months that I may be able to operate the system with the backup electric element completely switched off without any notice.
I was fortunate in that even though most of my home is shaded by oak trees, the area directly above the water heater stays sunny most of the day and is already on the south side of the home. I researched many different units such as Fafco, SolaHart (made in Perth, which explains why I saw pretty much only this in Australia), and Guardian. The Fafco unit did not impress me at all since it seemed to be nothing more than the same tubes used for a pool heating system, yet very expensive at and estimate of $5,500. I had liked the SolaHart and the simple thermosiphon system, but being in hurricane prone Florida, I didn't want a unit that required the storage tank to be on the roof; also considering any additional structural support that might be required. It was also pretty expensive with only one local company installing it and at a quoted price of about $6,700. Ouch. One surprising thing was that few of the sales people with whom I spoke really seemed to understand their products and the associated nuances outside of the marketing materials. When I started asking about Btu/ft² and how their product compares to others, they often had no clue as to what I meant, even though all products were rated at the Florida Solar Energy Center.
I did quite a bit of calling around to get prices and found that the fluctuated quite a bit on even the same system, so it really does pay to research options. I settled on getting a Guardian (using a flat plate collector) system installed. Estimates were as high as $5,900 - 5,500, however I was able to find one at $4,500 before finally getting to Advanced Solar Construction at $4,250. There is a federal tax credit for 30% of the installation cost, so after this year taxes are paid, I'd get a credit of $1,275 (lowering the out-of-pocket cost to $2,975). Florida is supposed to have a $500 refund available as well, but apparently the money for the program has been depleted for this year as well as next year, so all I can do is get on the list and hope it is eventually renewed, which would bring my install cost to ~$2,500. Getting a new water heater and installing it would have probably cost me at least $400, so overall my extra cost is about $2100. If I save on average $50 a month in my electric bill (though most marketing materials claim $20 per person per month) at just the current electrical rates, then it would take about 3.5 - 4 years to pay for itself. I tend to try to estimate worst case (part of my general pessimism), so I'm expecting on the outside just about a 5 year return period, but would of course be happy if it was less. Some estimate a 6-9 year return depending on location for soalr heating systems in general, so I'm pretty pleased with my deal. It may seem like a bit of money to spend at first, but right now it is a much better interest/return rate than I could get in any savings account or CD, plus I can feel good about reducing environmental impact. I really wish more people would look at overall cost of operating something other than just the initial purchase price.
On Friday the company came out to do the install. They removed the old 50 gallon water heater, installed a new, special 80 gallon tank, the solar collector on the roof, and did all the plumbing. Getting the large tank in place was a tight squeeze as the closet had just enough space to slide it in with not even an inch on either side to spare. I still have to install my own electrical outlet box to operate the pump since that wasn't part of the contract, but that is simple enough to do anyway. It took three guys most of the day to complete and I was fairly impressed with the work. It'll take a few days before I really learn the system and figure out how beneficial it may be, but so far I am pleased with it. I'm hoping that during the relative hotter months that I may be able to operate the system with the backup electric element completely switched off without any notice.
1 comment:
In the meanwhile, are you guys showering in cold water? Ick!!
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