Determining the Efficiency of Solar Swimming Pool Heating System

You can determine the efficiency of a solar swimming pool heating system based on the collector's thermal performance rating if available.

A solar collector's thermal performance rating is measured by Btu (British thermal unit) per square foot per day:

Btu/(ft²day)

Or, the rating can be measured by megajoules (MJ) per square meter per day:

MJ/(M²day)

It can also be measured by Btu per day, which is simply the rating in Btu/(ft²day) multiplied by the area in ft². Also used is MJ per day, which is the rating in MJ/(M²day) multiplied by the area in M².

The higher the number, the greater the solar energy collection efficiency. However, because weather conditions, instrumentation accuracies, and other test condition constraints can vary, the thermal performance of any two collectors should be considered approximately the same if their ratings are within 25 Btu/(ft²day) of each other.

High efficiency solar collectors not only will reduce your annual operating costs, but may also require fewer square feet of collector area to heat the pool.

Don't choose a solar pool heating system based solely on its collector efficiency. When selecting a solar pool heater, it's also important to consider the following:

• Size
• Costs.

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