RESIDENTIAL PRODUCTS
Homeowners
1)
Who is EnerWorks?
EnerWorks is a Dorchester, (near
London); Ontario, Canada based developer and manufacturer
of clean, intelligent, solar thermal solutions for
the residential and commercial markets. EnerWorks
is venture capital funded and works with Queen's University's
Solar Calorimetric Laboratory to develop innovative
and cost effective solar solutions
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2)
What is EnerWorks selling?
EnerWorks' solar water heating appliances
provide potable hot water and space heating using
the sun's energy instead of traditional energy sources.
Solar water heating products provide environmentally
clean, competitively priced, energy solutions for
a range of heating applications. The appliances are
available across North America through certified and
trained dealers/installers.
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3)
How much electricity does the EnerWorks Solar Hot
Water Appliance produce?
None. For hot water
applications, the EnerWorks' appliance replaces over
half of the electricity, natural gas, oil or propane
you purchase from your utility company, with free
solar energy from the sun. The appliance heats cold
water to hot water tap temperature or higher (usually
50 degrees Celsius; 120 degrees Fahrenheit).
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4)
Will heating water with solar energy save me money?
In southern Ontario and the north-eastern
United States, the free solar energy you get from
the sun will deliver summertime savings of 85% and
winter savings of 35% for a year-round savings of
up to 60% on your utility hot water heating bill.
In the southern United States and very sunny areas
of the west, annual utility savings of over 80% can
be achieved.
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5)
How much does the appliance cost?
EnerWorks
distributes its solar hot water appliance through
builder channels, utilities and renewable energy dealers.
There are multiple models of the appliance depending
on the heat demands of the application. The installed
cost will be quoted by your dealer or installer and
depends on the model of appliance chosen and the particulars
of the installation site. The installed cost of the
solar energy is like buying electricity at 7¢
CAD or 6¢ US per kWh. Consumers have the option
of purchasing or leasing the appliance. Commercial
customers can purchase solar energy on a toll basis
through power purchase agreements.
> Dealer Locator
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6)
Why would I want to buy an EnerWorks Solar Water Heating
Appliance?
EnerWorks
appliances offer these benefits:
- Cuts hot water heating
costs by half or more
- Reduces the impact of rising
electricity, gas and oil prices
-
Offers
cost competitive and environmentally friendly,
distributed green energy
-
Offers
a practical and inexpensive way for home owners
to support sustainable, pollution-free energy
solutions
- Contributes
to a healthier environment by reducing greenhouse
gas emissions (like CO2)
EnerWorks' appliances are dependable;
they do not affect how you use your hot water and
they require little maintenance.
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7)
How does the appliance work?
Solar energy, in the form of heat,
is collected by solar collectors and is transferred
through the Energy Pack to your potable hot water.
The appliance works in all seasons, is freeze protected
and is designed to reduce, not replace, your existing
natural gas, electric, oil or propane hot water and
home heating service. The appliance does not affect
the quantity of hot water produced or the speed at
which cold water is heated, making it an ideal environmental
solution.
For
more information click
here.
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8)
How dependable is the EnerWorks' Solar Water Heating
Appliance?
The EnerWorks Solar Water Heating
Appliance combines the dependability of conventional
fuels (natural gas, electricity, oil, propane, etc.)
with free energy from the sun. It has been developed
and tested with the participation of Natural Resources
Canada, Queen's University Solar Calorimetric Laboratory
and leading component manufacturers for over nine
years. The appliance performance has been third party
verified at the National Solar Test Facility at Bodycote
Material Testing in Mississauga, Canada. The appliance
requires minimal service every 3 years and has an
expected lifespan of over 20 years. EnerWorks appliances
are certified under CSA, FSEC, and SRCC standards.
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9)
How do EnerWorks solar collector and appliances compare
to evacuated tube technology?
EnerWorks'
patented solar thermal appliances use flat plate collectors
with very low flow, freeze protected heat transfer
fluid in the collector and high efficiency brazed
plate heat exchangers in the energy pack.
The EnerWorks' residential collectors'
proprietary overheat protection (patented) keeps the
collector temperatures under 120°C (248°F)
when the hot water tank is fully charged. The result
is low system pressures and no degrading of the heat
transfer fluid. Evacuated tubes can reach stagnation
temperatures of +300°C (572°F). These temperatures
can cause overheating, high system pressures and breakdowns
to rubber seals and vacuums
EnerWorks collectors have been
tested by third parties such as Florida State Energy
Center (FSEC). The EnerWorks residential collector
has a FSEC BTU rating of 786 BTU's per sq ft. The
leading brand of evacuated tube collector has models
with performance ranges of 634 to 785 BTU's per sq
ft. The EnerWorks commercial collector has about a
10% higher rating than the residential collector.
An EnerWorks collector with the
hook bracket mounting hardware can be safely positioned
on the roof in less than 5 minutes by two people;
there are no tubes and parts to sequentially pass
up or store on the roof during installation.
The EnerWorks collector and flashings
are a neutral colour and present on the roof like
a quality skylight. The collector box is only 3 inches
high, just like a skylight curb.
The copper tubing in the EnerWorks
collector is a continuous serpentine loop; there are
no internal connection points or brazing points to
fail.
The EnerWorks collector is thermally
sealed from the elements. The ambient temperature,
winds etc. have nominal impact on collector performance.
Given the same solar conditions, the EnerWorks collector
performs
as well in the winter as the summer. As the winter
ground water is colder, the appliances' heat transfer
is actually higher in winter than summer.
The EnerWorks collector and flashings
present a uniform flat surface across the roof and
have no spaces and crevices to hold snow, ice and
leaf debris. Rain and snow cleans the glass and slides
off the clean lower edge of the glazing.
The Micro thermal coating of the
EnerWorks absorber plate has a 94 % absorptance rating.
EnerWorks collectors and
Energy Packs are very cost competitive and deliver
solar energy for a lower cost than regular energies.
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10)
What is the advantage of a closed loop heat
transfer system versus drain-back?
EnerWorks
uses and strongly recommends the "closed loop
heat transfer" type systems even in hot climates
not requiring freezing protection.
In drain-back systems, if mains
water is being used as heat transfer fluid in an un-pressurized
system then a) collector tubing will scale and require
frequent maintenance or will malfunction; and b) pure
water used in a closed, un-pressurized loop will eventually
breed bacteria and cause bio-fouling or present a
hazard to potable water. Some drain-back installers
are trying to counter these effects by using a closed
loop propylene glycol drain-back system - propylene
glycol is an effective bactericide. If the glycol
is not pressurized and it is exposed to oxygen, it
will actually degrade even faster. If glycol and a
nitrogen blanket are used to avoid oxygen exposure,
the system becomes very complex, expensive and leak-proofing
becomes very difficult (but crucial). In drain-back,
all pipes have to be properly sloped otherwise the
drain- back won't work. This makes those systems very
dependent on the skills and level of care of the installer.
Traditional closed loop glycol
systems are known to a) blow heat transfer fluid or
water pressure relief valves and b) degrade the heat
transfer fluid in a short period of time due to exposing
it to high temperatures for extended periods of time.
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11)
How does EnerWorks Solar Hot Water Appliance handle
the high summer temperature and solar radiation of
a city like Phoenix Arizona?
Provided
the proper system design steps are taken to deal with
over heating (stagnation), EnerWorks believes that
closed loop systems are best suited to all climates,
from arctic to tropical. The EnerWorks residential
system has the following design features to help it
during stagnation with no user intervention required:
- Each EnerWorks residential collector
has a patented temperature limiting device that
vents out excess heat. This is done in a "passive",
mechanical way so that the device is not dependant
on a power source; the vent works automatically
even during a power outage.
- The expansion tank, its air chamber
and system pressure are carefully sized so that
a small amount of fluid boiling is allowed in the
small diameter collector tubes. Fluid in the collector
evaporates and the vapors push the rest of the fluid
volume out of the collector. Because vapor has a
very large specific volume and very small mass,
in effect, only a very tiny amount of fluid is exposed
to high temperatures. This dramatically slows down
fluid degradation. In essence, this is a "vapor
drain-back" system, without any of the issues
of traditional drain-backs.
- Where local regulations allow
it, EnerWorks recommends the use of a specially
formulated non-toxic, propylene-glycol that can
withstand high temperatures with minimal degradation.
- Fluid change is recommended at
least once every three to five years in moderate
climates, and checked more often in hot climates.
- The last protection level is
provided by a pressure relief valve set at 50 psi.
Worst case, the PRV leaks a few drops of fluid.
- Collector materials are carefully
selected to prevent out-gassing and to be able to
withstand collector stagnation temperatures (which
are lower due to the temperature limiting device).
For southern States, Arizona,
Florida, Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, California
- EnerWorks recommends a single collector appliance
for families of up to 5. For larger families, or where
solar heat is used for other than just domestic hot
water in the summer, a two collector appliance is
appropriate. Over-sizing solar appliances should be
avoided as it results in lower savings. Extended stagnation
is undesirable for both economic and technical reasons.
Reasonable episodes of stagnation will not hurt the
EnerWorks appliance, or the fluid; no action is required
by the owner (covering the collectors just to prevent
stagnation is NOT recommended).
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12)
How is the appliance installed?
In residential
applications one to four solar collectors (4 ft X
8 ft X 3 in.) resembling thin skylights, are mounted
on your roof, fence, or a ground mounted rack. An
insulated, flexible fluid line runs from the roof
to the hot water tank(s). Once connected, the EnerWorks'
solar water heating appliance is quickly ready for
everyday use.
The solar water heating appliances
are scaled up to provide the same benefits to commercial
users of hot water and other thermal operations like
food services, hospitality, multi-family accommodation,
car washes, community centres, agriculture, industrial
processes and government buildings.
In commercial applications,
repeatable modules of 10 collectors are sized to fit
the heat load and available installation space. Typically,
installations are from 20 to 120 collectors. EnerWorks
has supplied district heating projects such as Okotoks,
Alberta's Drake Landing Solar Community near Calgary,
where solar arrays with 800 solar collectors are mounted
on the garages of the subdivision. www.dlsc.ca
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13) I am building a new home, is
there anything I can do to make installation easier?
During mechanical rough-ins, run
a 3- or 4-inch PVC pipe from the basement (or where
your hot water tank will be located) to the roof (or
where you wish to install the solar absorbers). Contact
EnerWorks for installation requirements as certain
roof positions need to be considered.
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14) How can I get the EnerWorks'
Solar Water Heating Appliance?
EnerWorks offers solar water
heating appliances through dealers across Canada and
the USA, for installation by trained professionals.
For dealer information support in your area, please
send an e-mail to info@enerworks.com
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