How do you service a Solamax (later Thermomax) Panel with TDS300 tubes ?
I see many of these installations when out and about but in the light of my experience I wonder what proportion of them are currently working ?
The earlier system described here utilises the SOLAMAX TDS 300 Evacuated Solar Collector Direct Flow tube where the heat transfer medium (water/glycol fluid ) passes down and back from the SOLARMAX MD manifold through each collectors central copper tube, heated via the dark purple coated absorber.
My system consists of a 4m2 30 tube Solamax solar collector on a sloping south facing roof with a Deltasol B V3 controller heating a 260 litre twin coil cylinder and is in Somerset. The hot water storage tank is a 260 litre cylinder 1800 mm high X 450 mm dia plus 33mm of insulation from the Newark Copper Cylinder company with coils for solar, boiler and shower.
It was installed in August 2003 by Luke Hutchison of Southern Solar - which sadly like many suppliers disappeared in the night shortly after the installation. My installer left me with a modified garden pump for adding glycol to the solar circuit but no copy of the installation or maintenance instructions manual or the details of my installation or how much glycol needed to be added.
I have subsequently found a copy of the installation manual here:-
https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/7225506/solamax-installation-manual-tamas-hydronic
Since then despite my contacting several local installers and plumbers none have managed to keep an appointment to actually turn up on site and examine / show interest in the installation let alone offer any on going services. A tradesman can be found for a sale and installation for items of significant expense but not for maintenance for the life of the product. An inditement on the industry but regrettably the new normal. This tells the consumer only to buy products that are maintenance free which should exclude systems with glycol transfer fluids.
Despite the good quality of the product and installation, the system was not a success from the outset because of the most common problem with thermal solar installations - it overheated during sunny periods as there is no way to disconnect the heat source from the solar circuit once it had received all the solar power input that it needs, or can cope with. This resulted in the glycol solution being released as steam through the pressure release valve on the roof above the manifold. Glycol systems need to be regular cleaned / flushed out if fouling is to be avoided which can damage the solar circuit and pump through clogging with semi solids etc.
Consequently the solar circuit had to be regularly refilled with glycol solution due to overheating when the weather was fine and covered with tarpaulins when we went away from home. I now know that glycol solution needs to be replaced if has been overheated else it fails to protect systems against freezing and causes destructive corrosion. Glycol systems need to be regular cleaned / flushed out - if you can find that rare commodity - a competent regular service provider.
Access for maintenance required clearing a kitchen cupboard and other inconvenient disruptions.
A few years of exasperation led to my no longer refilling the system frequently enough which inevitably led to winter time frost damage and cracking of the manifold.
Recently I have been trying to get the system running again but on refilling the system the pump is now defective having blown the controllers 3Amp fuse and the panel seems to be leaking from the manifold.
To my surprise the tubes still appear to work as evidenced by the steam from the manifold despite the warning in the installation instructions that the heat transfer medium (water/glycol fluid ) must be constantly maintained from the moment of installation.
https://robertkyriakides.wordpress.com/2009/08/20/anti-freeze-agents-in-solar-systems/
The glass tubes must be handled with extreme care because the evacuated glass envelope is most intolerant of any mechanical stress which is obvious from their appearance. The manual is informative about installation but is uninformative about how to dismantle a panel after 20 years on the roof.
The difficulty of working at height juggling glass envelopes (unobtainable spares ?) on assemblies that are reluctant to come apart, may be the explanation as to why one can not find willing contractors to undertake the work. Deranged 70+ year olds with dodgy balance like me may be the only ones undertaking such work.
Removing the Tubes from the manifold is not easy - as I found to my cost ! - 1 tube down so far ! was part of my learning curve.
First the tube must be released from the manifold by loosening the larger 20mm nut which tightens down on an olive. The 17 mm nut is presumably an aid for manufacture and installation where it is used to stop the tube from rotating when tightening the 20mm nut. The the heat transfer tube is a close tolerance fit into the manifold and after twenty years is reluctant to part company with it. All ‘heave ho’ must be applied only to the upper metal sections and nuts and avoiding stress to the glass envelope and its hermetic seal on the heat transfer tube which is concealed under a plastic cover. I found that the tubes could be levered out of the manifold using one arm of a pair of water pump pliers as shown in the following picture - between the 20 mm nut and the manifold cover.
The tubes are held in place by stainless steel clips with retaining barbs which are not designed to be undone. However the tube can be released by sliding the tube, carefully alternately first down to release the top, then up and away.
Customer and Product Support
At various times Solamax changed its name to Thermomax and was then taken over by Kingspan.
I approached Kingspan regarding Solamax spare parts.
Hi Hugh
Apologies for the delay - this system is a pre Kingspan .
Unfortunately this system was made obsolete years ago so we are not in a position to be able to help you .
Regards
Arlene
Arlene Gallagher
Customer Service Executive
Conclusion
I may continue to try to repair the existing system but…
I do not wish to return to the hassle and complexity of a system with glycol in the heat transfer fluid. I would prefer a simpler drain back system requiring less maintenance as described below thereby reducing my dependence on a rarely existent product support services.