Days with Zero Solar Water Heater Output
11/02/2023
A solar water heater relies heavily on solar radiation to heat water. However, weather conditions, such as dense cloud cover, can significantly reduce system performance. In a rare case, recorded in the graph, the dense cloud cover caused a day with no temperature gain – the heater did not record even one degree Celsius increase throughout the day. Its behavior resembled more closely that of nighttime.
This phenomenon occurs because dense clouds block solar radiation, reducing the energy reaching the solar water heater collector. Although solar energy can still be collected on cloudy days, its intensity under these conditions is so low that the system cannot heat the water.
This case represents an extremely rare situation, since generally, even with moderate cloudiness, the solar water heater manages to raise the water temperature by a few degrees. However, this day was so cloudy that solar energy absorption was minimal, leading to zero temperature increase.
This situation reminds us of the importance of weather conditions on the performance of solar systems and the need for a secondary heating source during periods of heavy cloud cover.
UPDATE : 30/11/2024
| Day | MIN DS1 | MAX DS1 | AVG DS1 | MIN Temp | MAX Temp | AVG Temp | AVG LDR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-12-02 | 19.13 | 22.69 | 21.03 | 4.9 | 9.9 | 6.29 | 320.77 |
| 2024-12-01 | 18.31 | 21.06 | 19.82 | 4.3 | 7.7 | 5.44 | 325.55 |
| 2024-11-30 | 18.88 | 26.25 | 23.22 | 4 | 8.1 | 5.45 | 281.36 |
| 2024-11-29 | 23.38 | 39.5 | 29.49 | 7.8 | 12.9 | 9.49 | 330.98 |
| 2024-11-28 | 24.56 | 43.31 | 34.29 | 3.2 | 14.8 | 8.34 | 383.01 |
Data commentary: The table data shows that on 30/11/2024, the cloud cover was so intense that it did not allow any temperature gain in the solar water heater throughout the day. This is evident from the average light intensity over 24 hours measured by the LDR sensor, which is among the lowest recorded in the entire history. The following days were also very cloudy, but a small gain was recorded. Days where the solar water heater experiences losses throughout the entire 24 hours are very rare during the year and are documented by the data from Solar LIVE.
MSc in Environmental Education
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