Installation of the 24 glass tubes was quite a challenge for several reasons. The pitch of our roof is very steep, so I had to fabricate a wooden support system to provide reasonable safe access to the heater frame. The manufacturer claims that the tubes can survive hail etc .... but these tubes are glass and would certainly break if I dropped one!
Each vacuum tube slots into a hole in the tank with a tight fitting rubber seal. I used undiluted washing-up liquid as a lubricant, and carefully pushed each tube into place. The sealed, far end of the tube sits on a rubber seat in the frame. I can tell you that I was very relieved to get all 24 tubes safely in place.
Since I've not had time to complete the plumbing work, I temporarily sealed the input/output and filled the tank manually via the vent hole using the garden hose. I wanted to check for leaks and functionality before ripping out my gas water heater!
Once full, I noted the water temperature was 15c and the sun was setting. The next day was cold (5c) and very overcast ... surprisingly the tank temperature had dropped by only 1c overnight and was hovering at 14c. Later on in the morning, the cloud began to break and we had some sunny spells, within several hours the water temperature had reached 40c - very impressive.
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