Solar thermal hot water heating systems should be serviced every 2-3 years. The glycol which circulates through the pipes loses it’s anti-freeze qualities over time and needs to be topped up with concentrate or sometimes changed altogether. If the flow rates have not been set properly or if has overheated regularly, the glycol may have ‘caramelised’, and developed sticky blobs within the liquid. Temperature sensors may also become faulty or dislodged from their proper position resulting in false temperature readings. Controllers may need to be reprogrammed with non-default parameters after power cuts and software may need to be updated.
We service a large number of solar hot water heating systems on an ongoing basis. The majority are our own installations and invlove a mimimum of maintenance.
Recently we’ve seen a distinct rise in requests for us to investigate other installers work. We are more than happy to help clients whose original installers cannot be contacted for whatever reason. We will assess any problems and advise how any faulty systems can be fixed to maximise their potential. If your system isn’t giving you all of your hot water from March – October, and significantly reducing your winter gas/oil costs, then it is not achieving it’s full potential. Let us look at it and help you make more savings.
We are also very happy to repair systems that may have been damaged by falling roof tiles, trees, or storm damage. We will provide all documentation necessary for customers to make a full insurance claim.
A typical service will involve;
- power flushing your solar circuit to remove any debris
- assessing the existing glycol and refreshing it to ensure an appropriate level
- an examination of all fittings and connections within the solar loop
- all valves will be checked
- the expansion vessel pressure will be checked
- an examination of all electrical connections
- all settings, parameters and variables within the controller will be adjusted to suit the particular site
- the system pressure will be set
- an appropriate flow rate will be set to ensure maximum heat transfer