Solar Hot Water for a Swimming Pool

As long as you have the money to pay for it, solar hot water for a swimming pool will help heat your swimming pool's water to a luxurious warm swimming temperature. And it will certainly add to the number of weeks each year that you can enjoy swimming in your pool.

The solar swimming pool heating system uses a set of solar hot water panels that are installed on the house's roof. They are joined together in parallel, that is side-by side, because this minimizes the friction resistance to the water as it is forced through the panels by an electric water pump.

Just like solar electric or pv panels, the solar hot water panels work best so that they face the noon-day sun. In the northern hemisphere, such as north America or Europe, the panels work best when they're facing south.

In the southern hemisphere, such as Australia, Africa or South America, the solar panels should face north at midday. And where they can't face the optimum direction, facing west is the next best thing.

Just up the street where I live, a neighbor of mine has a couple of solar hot water panels on his roof but they're facing east. The two small panels aren't enough to heat a pool, but they are fine to supply cheap hot showers for the family. There is no water tank on top of the roof, so it must be someplace inside the house. And it will need its own electric water pump. Yes, the occupants will benefit from some of the early morning sunshine, but that's all. They won't get the midday sun or the late afternoon sun, which can be awfully hot in summer.

I have no idea who installed those hot water solar panels but, whoever it was, they probably never installed solar panels before. They should have read the instructions.

Cold water from the swimming pool is pumped up to the lower part of the water solar panels. There, it comes into contact with a large sheet of copper or other metal that has been painted matt black to absorbs the sun's rays and heat energy. The heat transfers from the metal to the water. The heated water is then forced out of the exit pipe at the top of the hot water panels, and runs back down into the swimming pool.

A computerized control panel is used to switch the electric water pump on when required, but also makes sure the pump only runs when the sun is shining. Running the water pump at night wouldn't help heat your swimming pool at all. In fact it would only lose more heat from that pool, and waste your electricity as well.

Solar hot water systems can be used with both fresh-water swimming pools, which are treated with chlorine, or salt-water pools which are kept hygienic with salt. Since salt water is corrosive and attacks metals, the water pump and all the pipe fittings need to be checked regularly. Corroded valves and parts just need to replaced from time to time.