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Home & Garden Articles
Save Money By Using The Sun To Heat Your Hot Tub Or Spa
Wed 09 May 2007 - 15:49
Save Money By Using The Sun To Heat Your Hot Tub Or Spa
By Rodney Wallin
A majority of hot tubs are heated by electricity, and many hot tub owners are surprised how electric bills skyrocket when a new hot tub or spa is installed. The efficiency of your heater, insulation around your hot tub, outside temperature, cost per kilowatt hour of electricity, insulating quality of your hot tub cover and other factors will determine how much it will cost you to heat several hundred gallons of water above 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
After studying a few monthly electric bills you might be searching for a way to minimize your spa water heating cost. One practical way to do this is using the heat of the sun, and installing a solar panel. There are complete kits available specifically designed for hot tubs for about $1,000. Now that might sound like a high price tag, but just add up the cost of heating your tub for a few years and you'll probably find it is an alternative worth considering. If you are handy with some basic tools and can follow directions you should also be able to put your own system together for less.
It really all comes down to some simple economics. Figure out what your tub is costing you in electricity each month. Calculate the cost to install a solar heating system and what it might save you every month on your electric bill. Divide your monthly savings into the total cost for the system, and this will give you the number of months it will take you to break even. After that point you are saving money every month. Your local hot tub dealer should be able to help you with these calculations and help you decide if a solar heating system is right for your situation.
A sun powered heating system for a hot tub or spa is a fairly simple concept. Water is circulated from your tub, through a series of pipes, and then passed through a solar panel. Here the heat of the sun is absorbed by the water, and warmed water is returned to your hot tub. Although it is only a few degrees warmer than when it left, over the course of the day a properly sized solar water heating system should be able to heat your hot tub water to over 100 degrees.
The solar heater is not a replacement for your existing heater but supplements it. While the sun is shining it can be used to raise the water temperature and keep it there during daylight hours. Then if you are using your tub in the evening, the electric heater can take over and keep it warm. Of course, on a cloudy day it is much less efficient, and at night if water is circulated though the panels it will actually cool the water.
Your spa's circulation pump can be used to push the water through the solar panels. Some systems have a separate pump just to circulate water through the panels and back to your hot tub. At least one manufacturer uses the power from the sun to make electricity for a separate circulating pump so you do not have to even pay for the electricity to power the pump.
You frequently see solar panels mounted on south facing roofs, but they can also be put on a rack, deck, or even on the ground. Aesthetics and personal taste often play a part in the placement of the panels.
Solar panels are generally low maintenance, and with few parts there is not much that can go wrong. To keep them operating at peak efficiency, they should be kept clean. Periodically check for leaks or other problems, but otherwise, you will find them to be an item you can often install, set and forget.
If you are serious about saving money on your hot tub heating expense then also invest in a good quality thermal blanket and a high R-value hot tub cover. When the tub is unused, both these items will improve the efficiency of your supplemental heating system and will also pay back your investment many times over.
Rodney Wallin writes on a wide variety of subjects and has enjoyed hot tubs for over 20 years. For lots of additional information hot tubs and on choosing the right hot tub cover, head over to his website at www.spa-hot-tub-covers.com.
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