Quality, Reliability, Durability
Solar water heating technology, pioneered in
the US, is the oldest and most developed of all renewable
energy systems. Modern solar water heating systems can provide
a large portion (40 - 80%) of household hot water demand
depending on local climate conditions and the size and type
of system. Most systems pay for themselves in four to sevenyears
and continue to provide hot water for many years thereafter.
Much of the United States receives abundant sunshine,
making solar hot water systems a very economical investment.
This map shows the average daily solar radiation available
on a south-facing surface measured in megajoules per
square meter each day.
heating often provides an even better investment. Payback
can be as low as two years and the solar system
can extend the swimming season by
several weeks without additional cost. Many homeowners have regretted the
purchase of a conventional pool heating system after
receiving their first utility bill.
application for solar energy is preheating ventilation
air for commercial and industrial
The vast majority of US manufacturers of
solar equip-ment voluntarily comply with national consensus
devel-oped by the Solar Rating and Certification
Corporation (SRCC). The SRCC tests and certifies collectors as well as complete
systems for performance, reliability and durability. In addition, manufacturers
and installers comply with the SRCC’s strict requirements for proper
installation, labeling and homeowner information regarding operation and maintenance.
Assurances of performance and quality are backed by warranties that in many
cases exceed the guarantees of other household appliances.
Made in America
In 1960, jobs within the energy industry (including
coal mining, oil and gas extraction, petroleum refining,
electric and gas utilities) represented about 1.8 percent
of total US employment. By 1990 that share fell to 1.2
percent. “This ratio likely will decline further over
the next decade,” the US Center for Global Climate
Change reported in 1993.
Employment patterns resulting from conventional
energy technologies are dominated by the capital-intensive
nature of the industry. When measured in jobs per million
dollars of annual expenditure, coal, oil, gas and nuclear
technologies support among the fewest jobs of any economic
activity.” The solar water heating industry is a good
example of the type of manufacturing needed to create both
new skilled and unskilled jobs.
Realizing the Potential
Several utilities all across the country—from
the Sun Belt to the Midwest and Northeast— offer consumers
a variety of programs to reduce the initial cost of solar
systems. In turn, the utility avoids the cost of installing
additional generating capacity, especially power to meet
peak energy demand, and using solar energy helps the utility
comply with every-increasing restrictions on pollution emissions.
In 1992, the US Department of Energy along
with the Edison Electric Institute, American Public Power
Association, and their utility and industry members established “Utility
Solar Water” or USH2O. USH2O will serve as a forum
for interested parties to develop and expand utility programs
for residential and commercial solar water heating.
Many state and federal government officials
have acknowledged the importance of solar hot water systems
in many of their programs.
These systems are examples of installations
resulting from a demand—side management program
at Sacramento Municipal Utility District.
The federal government
builds, owns and operates more buildings than any other sector
of the economy. Managers
of these buildings are learning from the Federal Energy Management
Program (FEMP) how solar and energy efficiency can be combined
to reduce the energy load of their facilities and save millions
of taxpayers’ dollars.
The federal government also subsidizes the
monthly utility bills for millions of low-income families.
The State of Florida and the US Department of Energy have
established a pilot program to demonstrate that SHW on low-income
housing can also save millions of dollars in federal subsidies.
and Urban Development agency has undertaken a project to
establish criteria and mechanisms that would allow mortgage
lenders to give homeowners an advantage for solar and energy
efficiency measures when purchasing a new or used home.
Solar water heating systems are
already eligible for the energy efficient mortgage programs
which allow homeowners to have higher debt-to-income ratios,
thus allowing them to qualify more easily for financing.
In fact, when SHW is incorporated into a mortgage, the monthly
finance charges attributed to the new system fall below the
monthly energy costs and give homeowners money in their pocket
In 1993, the
National Association of Home Builder’s Research Center
included SHW, as well as other solar options, in the Resource
Conservation House, a single-family residence built to demonstrate
to builders the characteristics and advantages of the many
new products on the market that are conserving our nation’s
The United States is striving
to reindustrialize with new technologies that create jobs
yet are environmentally benign. The US solar water heating
industry is comprised of the manufacturers profiled in this
brochure plus many distributors, installers and maintenance
companies nationwide. The question many people ask is “How
can the US save money, help our environment, and create jobs?