geyserwise & solar

[spiff]

I'm out of my depth here hence the question regarding the setup of the geyserwise unit with a solar panel.

how do you ensure the AC heater element only comes on IF the solar temp drops below a certain temperature?

 

[Speedster]

That's what the geyserwise does. It's a simple setting.

Note, the geyserwise will set the AC element on based on the geyser temp at a given time, not the solar temp.

 

[spiff]

That's what the geyserwise does. It's a simple setting.

Note, the geyserwise will set the AC element on based on the geyser temp at a given time, not the solar temp.

so is that's why it has a recirculating pump?

 

[joker08]

That's what the geyserwise does. It's a simple setting.

Note, the geyserwise will set the AC element on based on the geyser temp at a given time, not the solar temp.

if there is two right ? solar and a electric geyser?

 

[joker08]

I'm out of my depth here hence the question regarding the setup of the geyserwise unit with a solar panel.

how do you ensure the AC heater element only comes on IF the solar temp drops below a certain temperature?

What sort of setup do u have ?
I only have a solar geyser which has a built in electric heating element. The geyserwise controls the electric part and uses electricity if the temp falls below a set temp in a specific time interval.

 

[Speedster]

so is that's why it has a recirculating pump?

Uhm no, the circulating pump is needed for the solar to work. I think a short explanation might help...

You have panels or tubes on the roof which absorb heat from the sun and a container (aka geyser) that stores the water. The pump circulates the water from the geyser through the solar panel / collector where heat transfer takes place. This happens continuously throughout the day, as long as the panels are sufficiently warmer than the water in the geyser. The geyserwise then has the ability to turn on the AC element during a given period should the water not be warm enough as yet.

 

[Speedster]

if there is two right ? solar and a electric geyser?

Most solar setups have an AC connection too

 

[spiff]

What sort of setup do u have ?
I only have a solar geyser which has a built in electric heating element. The geyserwise controls the electric part and uses electricity if the temp falls below a set temp in a specific time interval.

it's my GF setup.

she has a solar water heater feeding an electric geyser run by the geyserwise with a recirculating pump

she wants to be sure the electric element is not been used when the solar temp is higher than a preset temp.

So if I set ALL temps to 50 degrees then if the solar is hotter than 50 degrees - no power is used by the element

 

[spiff]

Uhm no, the circulating pump is needed for the solar to work. I think a short explanation might help...

You have panels or tubes on the roof which absorb heat from the sun and a container (aka geyser) that stores the water. The pump circulates the water from the geyser through the solar panel / collector where heat transfer takes place. This happens continuously throughout the day, as long as the panels are sufficiently warmer than the water in the geyser. The geyserwise then has the ability to turn on the AC element during a given period should the water not be warm enough as yet.

ok so it's like my SG / GG setup then.
hot water above 60 - no GG / water below 60 - GG kicks in

how much power does the recirculating pump use?

 

[Speedster]

it's my GF setup.

she has a solar water heater feeding an electric geyser run by the geyserwise with a recirculating pump

she wants to be sure the electric element is not been used when the solar temp is higher than a preset temp.

So if I set ALL temps to 50 degrees then if the solar is hotter than 50 degrees - no power is used by the element

Correct. The geyserwise has 4 time slots for temperature, 1) midnight to 6AM, 2) 6AM to noon, 3) noon to 6pm and 4) 6pm to midnight. The 4 temperature selections apply to these time slots.

And then you can select when, or if, to turn the element on at all. If she selects no on times for the element it won't ever turn on, irrespective of the temp settings. And then she can also set it in holiday mode in which case the element won't ever turn on either.

 

[Speedster]

ok so it's like my SG / GG setup then.
hot water above 60 - no GG / water below 60 - GG kicks in

how much power does the recirculating pump use?

The one's I had were 10W

 

[spiff]

The one's I had were 10W

so there's no direct control of the pump then - it just run by itself even through the night time?

 

[Speedster]

so there's no direct control of the pump then - it just run by itself even through the night time?

Why would you want to turn the pump off? It'll only run at night if for some reason the panels are still warmer than the water, or if the panels are near freezing it pumps warm water through to protect the panels.

 

[spiff]

Why would you want to turn the pump off? It'll only run at night if for some reason the panels are still warmer than the water, or if the panels are near freezing it pumps warm water through to protect the panels.

Not going to turn off pump, it's in a complex so there nothing I can change other than the times, basically just want to understand the way it works.

 

[Tim_vb]

so there's no direct control of the pump then - it just run by itself even through the night time?

The pump turns on if the temp in the tubes is ~7C warmer than the sensor in the geyser

There is also a holiday setting that reverses this rule at night to try cool the geyser so it doesn't boil when its summer and no one is home to use the hot water

Regarding the mains element I have set mine to power on every day at 15:00 however the thermostat has to register a temp lower than 55C before the element is turned on. This way you are pretty much guaranteed hot water at night while maximising electricity savings