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Spec & Install
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As a consequence of our research into the various vacuum tube products on the market, our next step was to enhance the specification of the product, wherever possible, in order that our customers not only receive a top quality efficient system, but one that will also be long lasting and require minimal maintenance. Additionally, it was very important to us that these systems are affordable to everyone, which was a diffcult task considering we could not compromise on the quality. As a result of which and touring numerous factories in person, our enhanced specification is as follows;
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Manifold – Powder coated zinc galvanised steel with 50mm Rockwool insulation compressed at 70Kg/Cubic M. Many manufacturers use polyurethane insulation which is not environmentally friendly, unlike Rockwool.
Heat Pipe – 0.6mm Oxygen free copper, diameter 8mm with 1mm aluminium fin. Tested to 250C. Oxygen free copper must be used, as otherwise leaching may result which can lead to a point of weakness.
Copper Header – 99.93% copper, rated and tested to withstand 1.2Mpa. Brazed with Silver/Copper/Zinc.
Evacuated Tube - 1.6mm thick borosilicate glass, double skin vacuum with glass-glass seal. Selective absorber coating of Copper/Aluminium/Titanium. Max absorptance >93% and able to withstand temperatures of up to 400C giving greater tube life expectancy. In addition our tubes are 58mm x 1800mm which gives 30% more efficiency than many suppliers standard of 47mm x 1500mm.
Frame – 1.5mm thick 304 Stainless Steel with all bolts, fixings and straps of the same. Rubber components are vulcanised (UV treated) to give a maximum working temperature of 300C.
Finally, just in case you have little interest in any of the above but want peace of mind before purchasing your system, I can assure you we have gone to great lengths to ensure our specification is amongst the highest available and our tubes should provide 20+ years of trouble free heat production. But if something does go wrong, firstly, with the particular installation method employed, known as “dry”, individual tubes can be very simply replaced and secondly, if in the highly unlikely event it`s a little more serious than that we have a full 10 year manufacturers warranty. We are aware common warranty periods within the industry are normally between 1 and 5 years.
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| TRADE Installation guide |
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TRADE only version – Plumbers, heating engineers etc and Part P qualified electricians. We are a responsible supplier and only recommend our products are installed by suitably qualified persons. Thank you for choosing to install the Skyreach evacuated solar panels with heat pipes – the No1 choice for value and quality in the solar market. At the design stage, great care was taken to ensure our panels are manufactured not only to meet the demands of our climate using only very high quality raw materials and components, but also to provide solar hot water, with the potential for heating support, ALL YEAR ROUND. Combined with the fact there are no moving parts with our solar panels (apart from the pump!) the result is a very robust and aesthetically pleasing product that has an expected working life of 20+ years. Evacuated tubular panels are necessary for installations within the UK in our opinion, if all year round performance is required (we would only install Flat Plates with swimming pools for Summer use), as (i) a vacuum is the best possible insulator against loss of heat through conduction and/or convection and (ii) a tubular design has maximum exposure to the sun as it arcs overhead. All of our panels are vacuum and pressure tested at the ISO 9001 “state of the art” factory before being shipped out for delivery. In order to obtain this certification all of the management systems in place were evaluated by an internationally recognised 3rd party accreditation company. Because of these systems and the subsequent confidence of the manufacturer in the Skyreach product, we are able to offer a 10 year warranty against loss of vacuum with our tubes. Incidentally if in the unlikely event a seal does break and a tube loses its vacuum the tip goes white and will be hot to touch. Normally our borosilicate glass tubes (similar to Pyrex) are cool to touch even when the temperature within the copper heat pipes reach well in excess of 150c (that’s Centigrade not Fahrenheit!). Our panels can be used as “stand alone” units or linked together in series for larger applications. Additionally wherever there is no south facing roof, we normally install one panel on the East elevation and one on the West to maximise the light exposure, an upgraded controller is required with 2 pumps and these systems work very well. IMPORTANT - DO NOT INSTALL TUBES BEFORE SYSTEM IS OPERATIONAL
Fitting Procedure 1. Check all parts and ensure nothing is missing 2. Position the stainless steel frame uprights on the floor in front of you 3. Secure the Manifold to the top of the frame using the bolts positioned at the back of the manifold. Measure the distance between the uprights and fit the bottom track so that it is parallel to the top and approximately 150mm from the bottom. 4. Fit the 2 x 22mm x 1/2" or 3/4" compression fittings to both manifold ends 5. Erect your scaffold tower and ensure it is tied in safely to the building
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6. Position frame on the roof. This should already have been selected with regard to southerly aspect, required space, no shadows etc. Consideration should also be given to the location of the hot water cylinder or thermal store in relation to the panels, obviously the shorter the run the better.
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7. Bolt the ends of the stainless steel straps to the frame and slide the other ends under the tiles/slates wrapping around battens/roof joists. Screw into batten/joist. This avoids damaging the felt and should only be done if the battens are in good condition. Alternatively the straps can be bolted to rafters or a combination of these methods can be used. With concrete tiles, which we have found to be the easiest roof covering to work with, tiles can be slid up very easily to expose the roof and gaps used as footholds.
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8. Once frame is secure and square, drill 2 x 16mm holes for your flow and return pipes and 1 x 7mm hole for your temperature sensor wire. The sensor port is at the exit end of the manifold so make sure you know exactly where you want to drill before you start drilling. DO NOT INSTALL TUBES AT THIS STAGE 9. Plumb in your required system – conversion, twin coil solar cylinder, thermal store etc. Schematic drawings are available if required 10. Fit Resol Controller – We always fit Resol as they are simple to use, have found them to be very reliable and have 25 years installation history in Germany, which is way ahead of the UK regarding solar. You will need a 13 Amp switched fuse spur located near to the water cylinder or in the airing cupboard if it houses the cylinder. Decide on a suitable location for the controller, just outside the airing cupboard is usually good so that the customer can observe the temperature readings. 11. Remove cover and using a 3 core twin and earth round flex, wire in the power supply from the 13A fused spur to the controller N, L and Earth connections. Using 3 core Twin and Earth flex connect the circulating pump to the N, R1 and Earth connections 12. Connect the sensor cable from the collector into connection marked S1 (if the supplied cable is not long enough extend using bell wire or similar). Connect the sensor cable from the cylinder to connection S2. Replace cover. 13. Controller Set Up - Turn on the switched spur and the controller should now be on. All settings on the Resol controller are factory set and rarely need altering (Thermal store installations excepted). Press the right hand button (1) and hold for 3 seconds and release. Using the same button (1) scroll through the settings until you see the “Arr 1” screen and check that this is the correct set up for your system. No other alterations need to be made but it is worth familiarising yourself with the settings and checking through the instruction manual to see if all settings are correct as stated in the instructions. 14. Fill system with water/Tyfocor (food grade antifreeze). In order to pressure test a pump filling station works best. Do not be alarmed at this stage if the pump does not activate as there will be very little temperature differential until the tubes are inserted and the controller will be reading the temperatures via the sensors.
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15. INSERT THE TUBES This part of the operation is usually best done with 2 fitters. Remove 1 tube at a time from the box. Place top and bottom rubbers on the tube – 1 x manifold rubber (top) and 1 x jubilee clip rubber (bottom). Apply solar paste from the tube provided to all of the heat pipe end that is inserted into the manifold. Insert the tube into the manifold locating the heat pipe end securely into the manifold housing (ensure it fits as far as possible). Attach jubilee clip around the rubber on the tube and in pre-cut slots on the frame. Tighten the clip until it is firmly held but do not overtighten. Repeat the process until all tubes are in place
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16. As the tubes are inserted the collector temperature will rise. Once the temperature differential between the cylinder and collector reaches 6c (factory set temperature differential that can be changed if required) the controller will activate the pump circulating water around the system. 17. Even with an AAV there will probably be air in the system that will need to be bled to ensure the system is functioning at its optimum. From experience we have found the easiest method for achieving this is to release the nut on the exit side of the manifold until all air is dispelled. Be aware that as soon as the water starts to come through it will be hot so this part should be carried out as soon as the system is operational. Alternatively a Solar Air Seperator (Air Scoop) may be fitted with an AAV screwed in, and this can be fitted anywhere on the Return circuit. It does NOT have to be at the highest point to work efficiently. 18. Once satisfied all air is bled from the system and there are no leaks, lag all pipework with the insulation supplied and fasten with cable ties. Care must be taken at this stage to ensure the sensor cable is on the outside of the insulation and NOT in any direct connection with any pipework
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OK that`s about it - Free hot water WITH heating support (depending on installation option) for the next 20 years. AND you will reduce your CO2 emmissions by up to 1 ton per year!
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