MORE TIPS

Understanding the Importance of Water Treatment

Proper Maintenance Will Improve Air Distribution Efficiency

Accessibility Strategies

Evaluate How the BAS Will Connect With Other Systems

Key Steps to Safe Lift Operation

« Tip Of The Day Home      

How Solar Thermal Systems Can Help Save Energy

time 1:24

RELATED CONTENT:

Active Solar , Solar Thermal Systems .

Today’s tip is about the quote unquote original type of solar panels – thermal systems. Many facility executives are familiar with the photovoltaic panels that are garnering many headlines for their ability to generate clean, renewable energy, but active solar thermal systems also use the sun’s energy to make facilities more energy efficient. And they’ve been around for much, much longer.

Thermal solar collectors, which are usually placed on the roof and oriented south, convert the sun’s energy into heat, which is transferred by circulating water, antifreeze or air to another location for storage and use. The most common use for this heat is to heat water, saving other resources that would have otherwise had to have been used for heating. Another possibility is to use solar-heated water to preheat outdoor air drawn into a building – saving HVAC energy.

The exact energy savings garnered from an active solar thermal system depend on several factors, including how the systems is used and the amount of sunlight the panels have access to. For this reason, it’s hard to give any definitive return on investment numbers.