DIMENSIONING GUIDE
Under normal conditions you will find that your X-FLOW solar pool heating system will provide very good, efficient heating, often with a collector area as little as 50% of your pool’s surface area. However, there are certain circumstances where you may need to increase the collector area. Here we try to provide some helpful tips to ensure that your solar collector system will give you maximum effect and enjoyment:
Direction of installation
It is always recommended to have the solar collectors facing as directly towards the sun (i.e. due North) as possible in order to maximise the amount of solar heating available - but this is not always possible for practical reasons.
Installations facing North-East or North-West are quite acceptable, but in these cases we recommend that you increase the area of your collector by about 10%.
Installations that are south-facing are not recommended as this will severely reduce the amount of sunlight available to the system.
Angle of installation
The recommended optimum angle at which the collectors should be mounted is between 20 to 40 degrees to horizontal. This will optimise solar irradiation at the surface of the collectors.
If your collectors will fall outside the recommended angle range, we recommend you increase the surface area by about 10%.
Flat installations are in fact very acceptable since they have an added advantage of reducing possible wind effect on the collectors.
Wind
Wind is probably the single most important factor to consider when installing a solar collector system and the collectors should always be placed in as wind-sheltered a location as possible. For very windy areas we recommended you also erect a wind shelter to reduce the effect of wind on the collector performance - or reconsider the location of the collector.
As a rule, we recommend to increase the area of the collector by 10% for moderately windy areas. For extremely windy and exposed installation sites an increase of 20% may be more appropriate.
Pool Cover
The major cause of heat loss from a swimming pool is from the water's surface through evaporation. We recommend the use of a pool cover when the pool is not in use. This will also help to keep leaves and other debris out of the pool so you can spend less time cleaning and more time enjoying!
If you choose not to use a pool cover then you will require a substantial increase in your collector system sizing, perhaps as much as 50% or more - so using a pool cover is much more viable.
Please note that this guide is meant as a guide only. If you are at all unsure as to sizing requirements for your solar collector, please consult your solar heating dealer.