When was the last time you replaced your hot water heater? With current advancements in tech and science it may be time you replaced your water heater with a solar powered one. Solar hot water panels make up a fast growing market in the renewable energy industry. This concept is not new and has been more popularly known as SWH (solar water heating). It has been used across Europe in countries like Austria and Greece as well as around the world including places like China, Israel and Australia, among others.
People are finally realizing the strength solar power has and how to best harness it in an efficient manner. The reason solar power was inefficient in the past is because then current photovoltaic cell (solar panel cell) technology was still in its infancy and to set up large solar fields would have been expensive and not produced much electricity for an investment of that caliber. Now we are at a crossroads when solar tech is taking off and the United States is to be seeing a large number of solar energy facilities completed by 2015. In the future when solar hot water panels are even more efficient and inexpensive every house will be equipped with the latest solar tech. The roofs of houses will be covered in solar panels that will keep the house running green and reduce our reliance on coal burning. New advances for car fuels will also reduce our reliance on foreign energy and the costs we pay having to secure resources outside our own country. Many businesses such as Laundromats have already adopted the standard solar hot water panels and there are instances of media attention being given to firms that coat their roof in solar panels to subsidize their electrical costs. We are looking towards then future when many more new technologies and alternative energy sources will become apparent.