You will have obviously noticed the price of fuel and energy in general over the last few years. Quite simply its expensive, and continues to get more expensive. Therefore more people are looking to cheaper forms of energy to counter the expense of heating and powering a home through traditional means. Moving away from a a dependence on oil and gas has many benefits. Firstly not only can you save money, you also have a much clearer idea of how much your electrical and heating costs will actually be. So what are the ways we can move from oil and gas onto cheaper options. Well, there are wide range of choices from wind, biomass and geothermal, but in this case we are looking towards solar energy, and more specifically using solar power to produce heat with hot water.

Using the sun to heat water apposed to producing electricity directly with PV panels is actually a much more practical and efficient solution. The hot water produced could be used to provide water for washing or could be used for heating with a solution such as under floor heating. A solar water heater can saving significant amount each year, capturing free solar energy every day, even in mild climates. The choice then comes down to which panels to buy, or can you make them your self. Well, actually solar water heaters are very simple appliances and suitable DIY.

Below is a link to a video of a home made DIY installation of a solar water heater system. The video shows the type of tank used, and the insulated materials used to house the tank. The video also shows how the solar water heater is connected to the hot water tank within the property, click the picture.

Now, the set up will also have to accompany the choice of either placing the solar water heater panels on the roof, or locating the solar water heater on the ground. There are advantages and disadvantages to each. Generally more solar energy will be captured with a roof mounted system, however there are also considerably more costs, risks of wind exposure and the general appearance of the unit. Ground based units are much cheaper to construct and install, and with the right placement can capture as much solar energy as roof mounted solar collectors with less work.

For someone even with only a basic knowledge of DIY, building a solar water heater system is a realistic project and worth taking on. The simplest, cheapest and most reliable is a passive solar water heater.