Solar pool heater panels (Naples: installer, electric, rated)

[Jason Szumlanski]

Originally Posted by oldfart1947

I made up my mind. Having solar panels installed Tues. We are having six 12Ft. Heliocol panels installed. After much reading, I have decided they are best. We went with 6-12s instead of 7-10s because of fit constraints. We are only losing 24sq.. Later if we find it's not getting the job done, we'll add one 10ft to the line. I think it will work fine because our pool is only 5ft on the deep end.

$2550.00 installed

Sorry you decided to go with the competition. I work for the Fafco dealer in town. Can I ask why you decided that Heliocol panels are the best? Are you aware of the BTU rating for a Fafco Revolution (50,500 BTU/day) vs. a Heliocol (46,100 BTU/day)? These are the ratings for what each dealer sells as a 12' panel (the actual effective area is not exactly 48 square feet, and are not the same, so you can't go by BTU per square foot).

I hope you were not swayed by some of the sales talk that they like to use. They've been trying to bash Fafco for a long time - they just can't argue with the higher rating of Fafco panels. And there's a reason the Fafco dealer in town has been around for 37 years. We just replaced a system installed in 1979 (installed by the current owner and his son when the grandfather owned the company). Pretty cool!

Anyway, it's probably too late to change your mind, but I sure would like to know what convinced you that Heliocol is the best.

[Jason Szumlanski]

Originally Posted by oldfart1947

The one thing I forgot to mention, if I had a tile roof, then I would stay away from solar panels. I would then go with the heat pump.

I'm curious - why do you say to stay away from solar panels on tile roofs? Depending on the kind of panel installed, Fafco will put them on aluminum racks with substrate to flatten the panels out. We have literally thousands of systems on tile roofs. They look and work great!

[oldfart1947]

Originally Posted by Jason Szumlanski

Sorry you decided to go with the competition. I work for the Fafco dealer in town. Can I ask why you decided that Heliocol panels are the best? Are you aware of the BTU rating for a Fafco Revolution (50,500 BTU/day) vs. a Heliocol (46,100 BTU/day)? These are the ratings for what each dealer sells as a 12' panel (the actual effective area is not exactly 48 square feet, and are not the same, so you can't go by BTU per square foot).

I hope you were not swayed by some of the sales talk that they like to use. They've been trying to bash Fafco for a long time - they just can't argue with the higher rating of Fafco panels. And there's a reason the Fafco dealer in town has been around for 37 years. We just replaced a system installed in 1979 (installed by the current owner and his son when the grandfather owned the company). Pretty cool!

Anyway, it's probably too late to change your mind, but I sure would like to know what convinced you that Heliocol is the best.

You're right, Too late. The new panels are sitting in my back yard. No one did any Fafco bashing. It just so happened that the guys that contacted me sold Heliocol.

As a former contractor, the thing that I liked the most, was the individual tubes that allowed your roof to breath under the panels.


I don't have any scientific data to support that theory,but I believe it. And that is what is most important to myself.

You should have posted sooner. I would have given you a shot at an estimate.

[Jason Szumlanski]

Originally Posted by oldfart1947

You're right, Too late. The new panels are sitting in my back yard. No one did any Fafco bashing. It just so happened that the guys that contacted me sold Heliocol.

As a former contractor, the thing that I liked the most, was the individual tubes that allowed your roof to breath under the panels.


I don't have any scientific data to support that theory,but I believe it. And that is what is most important to myself.

You should have posted sooner. I would have given you a shot at an estimate.

Yeah, I'm sorry I didn't see the post earlier. Fafco also has a separated tube model (Sunsaver ST). The Heliocol dealer tends to conveniently leave that out of their sales pitch when we are in competition. We've heard it all - "FAFCO panels rot your roof" is a favorite sales tactic. Lots of people have that same theory. It's not correct, but since we have both options, it's not really a problem from a sales perspective.

I have hundreds of pictures of full body collectors coming off roofs where the roof under the panels looks brand new and the rest of the roof is filthy. The full body collectors actually protect the roof. Separated tube collectors also have a bit of a protecting nature, but they tend to trap leaves and pine needles, so they are not recommended in heavily wooded areas.

I'm sure your system will heat your pool, you will be satisfied initially with your purchase, and congratulate you on your decision to go with solar pool heating! When you are ready for a replacement or need service, give us a try. We'll be here for another four decades of service, I'm sure!

[oldfart1947]

Panels installed yesterday. He finished the job around 3PM and by sunset, the pool temp was up 3 degrees. Today will be the first full day. The water temp is now 74 degrees. We'll see how it does today.

[Jason Szumlanski]

Originally Posted by oldfart1947

Panels installed yesterday. He finished the job around 3PM and by sunset, the pool temp was up 3 degrees. Today will be the first full day. The water temp is now 74 degrees. We'll see how it does today.

You should see something in the low to mid 80's. With a well sized system, you should get about 10 degrees above Gulf Temp. My blog (SolarSouthwestFlorida) has a current Gulf Temp link that you can check. Expect even higher if you are using a cover.

Good luck! Hope you love it!

[Harbor Hopper]

Originally Posted by oldfart1947

Panels installed yesterday. He finished the job around 3PM and by sunset, the pool temp was up 3 degrees. Today will be the first full day. The water temp is now 74 degrees. We'll see how it does today.

Should be low 80s by end of the day, and higher tomorrow, depending on how long you run the pool pump. I set my pump to come on when the sun is overhead (around 1pm), and off by 6pm. 5 hrs/day is plenty of circulation time.
The heat will hold better overnight is you use a blanket. I put mine away for the year, so I lose about 5 degrees every night. By 2 or 3pm, it's back up to 85

[mrs.cool]

Originally Posted by Karen and Jim

The WINE stays cold too! We have our hot tub in a gazebo, and while it's great getting INTO the tub, getting out and getting the top back on and that doors shut, and that lonnnnng walk (about 20 feet) BACK to the house again, almost make it not worth it?? Hmmm.......still not sure whether or not to put one in at our new house too........lots of planning to do, huh Jill? WE LOVE IT!! We've built two houses, and while THIS house.....circa 1864 has been wonderful......a new house will be super once again!

Yes, my wine DOES stay cold on the railing! And when mr.cool says "your hair freezes", he didn't mean his. HA HA HA HA HA!!!
It's about 12 feet back to our house, and I always put the cover on first, but we must run ours' hotter, because I don't have the problem of getting cold while putting the cover on. Of course we have no doors to close, it's out in the open on the deck. But if your body temperature is hot enough from sitting in the tub you don't really get cold for quite awhile once you get out. We always laugh at each other when we get out (and not only because 50 year old people shouldn't be naked ) but because the steam rises off you like a boiling pot of water on a stove!

[oldfart1947]

Originally Posted by Harbor Hopper

Should be low 80s by end of the day, and higher tomorrow, depending on how long you run the pool pump. I set my pump to come on when the sun is overhead (around 1pm), and off by 6pm. 5 hrs/day is plenty of circulation time.
The heat will hold better overnight is you use a blanket. I put mine away for the year, so I lose about 5 degrees every night. By 2 or 3pm, it's back up to 85

Started at 74.....got to 81 then dropped to 80 as the sun set ( it also got pretty cloudy before sunset)

This morning it is 77....so it should get a little warmer today.

We know we are slightly under the square footage of panels 6-12s instead of 7-10s. If it doesn't get the job done, we will add one more panel.

I realize that a cover will keep the temp up at night, but I really don't want to be bothered with the cover unless I have to.

Note; my panels are on the west side. The south side is the front of my house and I didn't want the panels on the front of my house.

[Jason Szumlanski]

Originally Posted by oldfart1947

Started at 74.....got to 81 then dropped to 80 as the sun set ( it also got pretty cloudy before sunset)

This morning it is 77....so it should get a little warmer today.

We know we are slightly under the square footage of panels 6-12s instead of 7-10s. If it doesn't get the job done, we will add one more panel.

I realize that a cover will keep the temp up at night, but I really don't want to be bothered with the cover unless I have to.

Note; my panels are on the west side. The south side is the front of my house and I didn't want the panels on the front of my house.

That sounds about right. A 3-4 degree drop overnight without a cover is normal. An undersized system without a cover is a tough scenario for solar panels to overcome. If it were 100% coverage, you should expect about 10 degrees over the Gulf temp each day. The ambient temperature in the morning has much less to do with the pool temperature, or at least there is a very loose correlation. Look to the Gulf temp to see where it should be.

The west side is fine. The loss is no more than 15%. Southwest is better. You can upsize your system to compensate.

It all depends on how you use you pool. If you swim in the morning frequently, South or even East facing panels are good, as long as you use a cover. There are a lot of scenarios.

It sounds like your system is working as intended and as designed. Enjoy your warm pool!!!

If you want the current Gulf temp, search for "solar naples gulf temp" and you should get my blog page with the current temp. At this moment it's 72 degrees Fahrenheit. If you start in the upper 70's today, you are in good shape!