A Brief History of Solar Hot Water

Many of us see solar as the technology of the future.  And that may be true.  But solar thermal heat is nothing new.  It's a proven technology that's been around (with periodic improvements) for well over a hundred years.

The first commercial solar water heater was patented in 1891.   By 1909, solar heating systems had evolved to something very like what we use today, with separate collection and hot water storage components. 

Solar water heating was tremendously popular in the early part of the 20th century, especially in California and Florida.  An estimated 8 million households heated their water with the sun in these areas.  Unfortunately, aggressive marketing by utility companies resulted in most of these systems being replaced with electric and gas heaters.

The U.S. flirted briefly with solar again during the energy crisis of the 1970's.  But once more, cheap fossil fuel and a hostile administration in the 1980's prevented its success in the marketplace.

Now, with projected worldwide demand for energy skyrocketing, and fossil fuels becoming harder to extract, we're seeing a renewed interest in renewables.

Thanks in large part to generous state and federal incentives, solar thermal is once again a cost-effective water heating option. 

For more information on financial incentives for homeowners and businesses, click here.