Solar hot-water systems involve a fair amount of labor-intensive planning and plumbing, but a typical collector installation is fairly straightforward.
On this membrane-covered shed roof, (1) the first step was to erect the aluminum frames that hold the panels. The frames are adjusted to a fixed angle that maximizes the collector’s solar gain and are bolted to blocking that has been integrated into the roof. (2) The panels, which weigh about 100 lb. each, are carried up and clipped onto each pair of frames. (3) Simple compression fittings connect the panels to plumbing. (4) The installers added two more panels and finished in about half a day. They spent another two days setting up the system.