PV Gap

Lonnie Said:

which type of solar heater is better? one that uses pipes or panels?

We Answered:

For heating water, all the panels have pipes in them - it just may not be so obvious in some.

Maybe what you are thiking of is evacuated tubes? There is a certain kind of heating system where antifreeze instead of water flows through the thing on the roof. Then the hot antifreeze is pumped below, where it heats water. The advantage of this kind of system is that if you're in an area where you have to be careful of water pipes freezing in the winter, the antifreeze won't have that problem. The downside is that it costs more, so if you're in Mexico or Hawaii, it's a waste of money.