How to service your Solahart Hotwater Heater
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- Опубликовано: 21 июл 2017
- Step by step instructions on how to service your Solahart Hot Water Heater.
As RUclips no longer supports small people like me (now need 4000 minutes watch time in 12 months and 1000 subscribers before Ad-sense starts) but are still happy to have people supply them with "free" material like this, I have discovered I can set up a paypal.me/servicesolarhart link if you would like to share a dollar to go toward the cost of producing.
Thanking you in advance. 
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This video is GOLD! My plumber ran away saying he cannot make it and taking my money. I managed to service my heater myself with this video!!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Too many people don't know how to take care of their own house these days! Its great that you can teach us, and help everyone become self sufficient 😁
Excellent informational video, thankyou for sharing Paul. Got 300 liter solarhart hot water system installed on our roof 2005. Serviced every 5 yrs by solarhart. Hot water temperature never been satisfactory since day 1. Two years ago, I adjusted the thermostat from 70 to 80°c, only mild improvement. Yesterday morning hot water temperature not acceptable. After watching your video, purchased a new heater element & thermostat from solarhart. New thermostat was physically different to the old unit. Old unit was grey colour same as in this video, new unit was black in colour. Turned off water supply, & power at the main fuse box. I tested the exposed wires after removing the main black plastic cover to make sure no wires were alive with my A/C voltage live wire tester I bought on eBay for 35.00 2 yrs ago. No beeping noise indicating wires were dead. Taken photos of the wiring arrangement, plus I marked the wires with liquid paper pen. Remove & replaced new heater element & thermostat. Reconnected 2 wires, active & neutral in series from main wiring loom to thermostat & then to heater element. Turned on water first, purged air from water tank. Switched on power at fuse box, fuse did not trip which is a good sign. Next morning, best shower I had since system install. Very, very important to note. If your not confident dealing with electrical wires/reading electrical diagrams, do call an electrician. You will not get a second chance with electricity, it's instant death. I did remove the inspection cover, cleaned up & reused big o ring seal. Sacrificial rod was in good condition, tank internals clean. Noticed old heater element covered in a fine black substance, like soot. No calcium where we live. New thermostat dial max temp is 70°C not 80°C like the old thermostat. By the way thermostats are cheaper on eBay. Paid 75.00 at solarhart here in Brisbane for the thermostat. Heater element is cheaper at the dealer than ebay, paid 70.00. 👍🏻 from brizzy
Well done, sounds like you where sensibly careful,. Glad I could help and your “update” worked well.
@@paulsmediaservices1416 thankyou Paul, 👍🏻👌🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Great video, precise and instructive. Small contribution to Paul's greater effort, the sacrificial rod can be of three types: Orange, Black or Blue, and the choice is dependent on the water hardness. Orange for soft water, Black for mid range, and Blue for hard.
Cheers!
Thank You, I didn’t know about the different rods. Part of the fun being a home handy man, not a professional.
There is not much information available about this process. Glad I could help.
would u recommend this product i like it but its very expensive cheers for help
What an excellent and helpful video, in terms of the information, the thorough, logical process, and the video production. Kudos to you, Paul.
Thank You. I was surprised how hard it was to find any information about this process, and 53,000 views later reflects this…
This is really helpful, thanks for taking the time to film the process.
I have this same solar heater on my roof. It developed a leak at the flange gasket. Thanks to your video, I now understand how to get into the heater, what all to check and will be very successful on this repair and maintenance. Thank you so very much for your video.
Thanks for the video Paul.
Thanks for this video. Had a service booked in and the tech convinced my wife to put off the service until we got a new panel (the glycol leaked out) but it'll take 10months b4 I can save up the 2.5k. the only option was to get another call out in during that time. But that's more $$ down the drain.
Muchly appreciated.
Thanks alot for this instructional video Paul, has helped me alot. Cheers mate.
Paul you are a bloody legend. This was such great help👍👍👍GB.
VERY Helpful, thank you
Thank you for the very informative video. I'm going to take this on. Although no calcium where i live so just go for the anode.
You sir are a legend. As someone who lives 350km from the closest major town I say. Thank you.
Glad I could help, was very surprised at the lack of information I could find about this process. Everything seem to point to companies coming out to do it for you, for a price !
Thanks for taking the time to make this very practical and informative video. Would have struggled had you not made this useful maintenance video!
I was amazed how little info is available.
Awesome! Thank you very much for your time and effort in sharing the service you gave your solar hot water system. It helped me understand quite a lot of stuff.
Glad I was able to help.
I'll be attempting this myself soon, and your video will be a tremendous help. Thanks
great and easy to follow video, will save many headaches and lots of money!!!
good on you for posting this.cheers
Perfect video mate helps a lot with the traps for new players. Short and precise well done
No worries, glad I could help.
Hi Paul. That is a great video. You covered every area that i wanted to know and explained very clearly. Thanks Heaps! Now I will service my own system :)
ucafegrill Thanks for the comment, it is great hearing how this video has helped others. Cheers Paul.
Brilliant video no bullshit just good information thank you for posting I’ll be doing mine this week
Gday mate, thankyou so much for taking the time to do this video, great help, cheers.
Your AWESOME Paul, cheers for that - think you may have saved me a little money as well. Will give it a crack tomorrow morning.
Thanks for this... So helpful 😁👍
Excellent video. Thanks for sharing. You have been so helpful.
Glad it made sense.
Thanks so much, I have replaced the thermostat and element but I was concerned about the anode, You have cleared that up in a great video, thankyou. My job next week
Glad I could help. Hope it all made sense and don't forget to turn off your mains power! One guy got a zap because...
Thanks mate!!!! Saturday & it’s pouring rain so I’ll have a go myself. Cheers 👍
A good time to have a go. Remember to turn off mains and loosen the sacrificial rod before you empty the water.
Worked a treat & getting warm already! Thanks again mate!
Great video, thanks.
Thanks for the very informative and easy video mate👍
pwhan12345678 - Glad I could help you.
Excellent explanation! Thanks
Thank You.
Already cleaned the small gauze filter good to go again but will need to do full service it has been 13 years ( lucky for some ) I am on rain water 🚿 thanks again
How did you go? I am interested on how much build up you had with rain water...
perfect vid mate, muchly appreciated
Well made video...Good job
This is amazingly helpful Paul, thank you very much!
Also, wowee your ‘licensed electrician’ sure works fast ;)
Ah yes, just around the corner… :-)
Brillante vídeo thank you
Thanks Paul. Great video. I had heater element replaced by "professionals" 2 years ago but the flange is now leaking due to them not treating the rust both on the heater flange and the tank flange. It will take me all day to first remove the rust, treat with rust converter, allow to dry, treat with cold galv, allow to dry and then reassemble. I guess that its too much to expect tradies to do this as they would have to make repeated visits throughout the day and would be too expensive.
Glad I could help. Don’t forget to make sure you have maximum electrical connection between the rod and the body of your water tank.
Thanks for this, got qouted $8k for a replacement system. Watched this and realised how basic they are, so went up to have a look. Turns out the system was installed in 83 and it's full stainless steeland tank is still pristine. Guess I can trust the local plumber as far as I can throw them. New non return valve and pressure/temp valve and found the hidden isolator that was cutting power and it's good as new!
Glad I could help. Yes I agree, sometimes it is hard to find a tradesman you can trust. That is why it is important we continue to share knowledge, while always thinking about safety is vital.
Is that en Edwards system? Keep that for life. I have a solarhart that's rusted out and we were trying to buy a stainless Edwards but they were bought out and decommissioned because they last forever.
Thanks Mate, really helpful!
diego dragonetti Glad I could help.
Thank you for your video very helpful
Kycania - Glad I could be some help. Now you have the fun of doing it, good luck. 👍
Thanks mate that was exactly what I was after 🙏
Hi Paul , Thank you for the video, an excellent explanation. I was about to change my O ring seal when I noticed the bolts were all finger tight , and as I tightened them up the leak stopped.
They are now only firm but no leaks, and as its not leaking I will hold off changing the seal. Thanks again.
Howard Bond Glad I could help 👍
Paul! Mate! Cool vid Dude! Mine running cold and I found this clip, looks almost like my roof, corrugated with the Macs behind it.
Glad I could help. 😊👍
Great video
Thank you sir for u r valueable information
Suhail Pasha - Glad I could help.
Glad I could help.
Thanks for the video champ, have saved me $$$$
Awesome video mate. I need to take off my solar panels on my solar hot water system to reseal the bracing to the roof. Either way, you have shown me some other things I can do myself. Unfortunately I think my system is on its way out. Built in 1981 and still going! lol :)
Fair enough, 1981 - 2018 = 37 years ! You can say you got your money’s worth, it doesn’t owe you anything ! Here in Alice Springs about 15 years is the most we can hope for. We have really hard water, as you can see in my video. Thanks for the support.
Just up the road..I'm in Darwin! :) I managed to figure out how to take the solar panels off. Just unscrew the water pipes (inlet/outlet) they pull off, then unscrew the brackets and walah! I'm about to put a calcium filter to help reduce in build up (higher calcium deposits from ground water here).
Anyway, a good video! Somehow I don't think my sacrificial anode will exist (either physically...nothing left or be in stock) being a 37 year old model! I'll ring them anyway and ask! haha
cheers, good video is good
Hi Paul, great video on how to service a roof mount solar hot water system. I noticed in this video you have an old Solahart 302J closed circuit system that uses glycol in the collector panels for heat transfer. sometimes this too needs to be topped up as part of the service, as the glycol sometimes is also running low it will no longer be effective for Solar water heating, and you'll need to rely on your heating element to compensate. otherwise good video
Hi Hermetika! Indeed this is a great video and only the glycol topup is missing, which was one of the key tasks I was looking for. would you or Paul be able to show/tell how is that done?
Brilliant!😊
Legend Thanks mate
Ripper mate! Screw the tradies this is a piece of piss. Ok, Aussie slang over..Thanks for posting such an informative video, just got 2 of these systems a year old for 200 euros plan to install and service soon. Great help, I'll shout you a tinny any day!
Dave Nally Glad I could help and I will say yes to that drink the next time your are in Alice Springs. 👍
Legend mate
@Paul's Media Services: The old Sacrificial Anode which you took out still has about 50% life left in it. The wear normally begins from the beginning end and continues to the loose end. it has a metal rod inside in the middle which doesn't wear till all the coated chemical is gone. The rust to the tank only begins after all the chemicals have reacted with water. (Read the inventor's notes on the registered patent in USA by University of California - Davis Campus).
Thanks for the info, good to know.
Hi Paul, Really enjoyed watching this video. Did you change the coolant/ Hartgard fluid? I'm about to do this and want to see it first before attempting.
Gary Leong Hi Gary, sorry, I was lucky enough to not need to touch my panels so can’t help you but I think there might be some info on RUclips from others. Cheers Paul.
During winter time my solahart metal pipes and flow back cease nut burst due to extreme cold any solution to get rid of this problem ????
Excellent ! thank you ! Was the Anode 35mm ?
Hi Paul great video and very helpfu. I have question to ask you my water heater the hot water not coming out the oulet.
Hi, guessing it could be a number of things, but sorry I am not a plumber.
Hi. Unfortunately I am not a plumber, so unable to help you. (Legal stuff)
Anyone know where I can get a new thermostat? Mine is physically broken and is no longer working. Thanks for the great video.
Great video. I’ve been quoted about $400/$450 to get mine serviced. 😮
Hi Paul. Thank you for the video. I have a problem with my hot water. In the shower it keeps running out. It will flow for a minute or so,
then you can hear air in the pipe, then just cold water comes for a few seconds, then more gurgling, and a bit of hot water, then cold again. Will cleaning my tank out fix this, or is there another cause please?.
Hi Alistair, sorry I am not a Plummer so not to sure, maybe the temperature mixer/regulator ? Good luck. :-)
Why my solahart system doesn’t heat any more as copper pipes and nuts are very hot enough. It been three year since I installed it in village. Any solution ? Last year it was very good and heat well.
Did you get parts from Solahart, if not where did you get them from.
LMSProductionsSA - Hi, Taps, Tubs and Tiles are the cheapest here in Alice Springs.
Anyone know how I get the thermostat out? Mine is tight inside a yellow, plastic box...
Great video, by the way. I can do most of this stuff myself now that I know what I'm looking at... Thank you!
Great video Paul, thank -you. Did you forget to mention to turn off the water supply?
sibhs66 ah, true. I guess I assumed somethings were obvious 😊😀 but....👍
If people cant think of the obvious without being told, they should get professional help,
Hi Paul, Great Job, How did your Hot Water end up? I noticed you have a closed Solahart system and as such needs Glycol to heat the Water in the Tank from the Panels. I noticed you did not check if this Glycol is still enough in the Panels. Other than that Great job.
SolarCleaner Australia Scott Meloni Hi Scott, all working fine. At this time the panels seem to working well so I didn’t touch them. Here in Alice Spring summer can be brutal so during summer I cover up one of the panels with a tarp with no drop in efficiency. I guess the old saying of “if it not broken, don’t touch it” works here but checking Glycol levels wouldn’t hurt. Cheers Paul.
Hi Paul, I need to replace the heating element as it was fried in a remodel when the tank wasn't filled. Do you have an online parts supplier by chance? Thanks in advance for any help!
Hi Andy, sorry unable to help. I just went to my local store that all the plumbers use.
Hi Paul
My Neutral wire from the element has broken or disintegrated, would you recommend re-connecting that or it be easier to replace the heating element altogether?
Hi Gary. Sorry, I am not a electrician so unable to give advice. My new element was AU$35.
@@2ardMr Thanks Paul, i rang a hotwater company for the element and thermostat, i was quoted $160.
Does not sound right!
Hi Paul, where did you buy the parts from? We have a 300J
Hi Gordini. I picked my parts up from my local plumber wholesaler store here in Alice Springs.
Hi Paul , The booster for my 15 Mounths old solarhart hot water system not working ? do I need to reset the trip button , if so where is it within the thermostat ! Thank you
Ben-Lee D'limi Hi, sorry unable to help you. As it is to do with power you will need to ask an electrician for advice. As you know, we have to be very careful when ever working with electricity.
Paul, I live in Katherine in the NT and I am having God's own trouble finding and element and anode! Can you suggest where to order online?? Mike
Where did you purchase the parts From?
Hi Stuart, Taps, Tubs and Tiles are the cheapest here in Alice Springs.
Hello I have a similar rooftop unit, and I need to replace the heating element, anode, and thermostat. Do you have any part numbers or references, where we can find these?
Hi. Sorry I am not a plumber so unsure where to find these details. Your best bet would be to write down the info tag on your tank and take it to your local plumbing place, they should be able to help you.
Nice work mate. You know what you're talking about coming from a plumber. And I know only licensed plumbers and electricians will be following your instructions so as to not break the law. :p
Hey there just the video I've been looking for. Would you happen to know the reason why the exact same tank would be dumping all the hot water and continually refilling even though it is full? it ran my water bill and electric bill up almost 800%. Any knowledge would be appreciated. Thanks
Firstly, I’m not a plumber. So I’m only sharing my personal experiences. I do know when my hot water system dump lots of hot water is when the holding tank is too hot and needs to cool down, the only way it can do that is push out hot water with cold water to drop the overall temperature of the tank. Here in Alice Springs it only happens in summer. During the peak of summer I put a tarp over one of my two solar collectors, it reduces the number of times it needs to do that dump process. The other thing to consider would be the relief valves. I have been told they need to be replaced every few years.
@@2ardMr I appreciate the input. solid puzzle pieces. Cheers.
@@kaiziel No worries, I find I have to cover myself from the legal point of view now days, that’s why my reply started a bit strong. Hope my experiences helped. Cheers Paul.
Would anyone know the size of the big o-ring on the tank please
Cheers mate big help, probably be alot easier to do without a camera in your hand 😂
Your not wrong, Glad I could help.
Paul I've tried to break the term rod loose it just wont budge. I'm worried I'll break the head off any thoughts?
Thanks
I am not sure what a term rod is but guess it is the sacrificial rod, I found it very hard to undo. This is why it is important to leave the 300 litres in the tank (extra weight) and I had to borrow that really long extension rod for the spanner to gain enough purchase to break the seal.
@@2ardMr yes sac rod, thanks.
Also I'll be replacing the heating element.
I'm assuming one without a curve will be sufficient.
Hey mate getting hot water during the day and not at night can’t figure out the problem?
would,nt an inline filter be the way to go for the hws or maybe even the whole house ?
If you put a strainer on the outlet side of the hwu it will still clog up. The strainer on the mixer valve does the same thing as a filter. when it does clog up its a sign he system needs servicing to get all the sediment out of the holding tank
@@garethprobert4352 thanks 4 ur reply ,my main feed with a (gate valve) up to the new s/s tank, is at ground level , that's where I,m thinking of putting a strainer/filter ,I,m to old to be climbing roofs anymore !
Its up to you if you want to put one in. You won't be able to use a filter that has a rubber O ring on it cause the hotwater will eventually melt the rubber. The sediment is coming from the calcium and corrosion inside the tank so it's kinda pointless putting it before the tank. If you stop by a plumbing hardware you can get something called a strainer. Install that on the outlet side and you'll catch some sediment that way. Otherwise if you're putting your system on the ground outside you may aswell just flush the whole system out the ground if it does start to build up.
What about the collectors? I undid the jacket outlet and the collector inlet but no fluid came out at all. Is this right?
I have switched hot water system from one roof to another bug now water won't get hot.
Ant Poo Hi Ant Poo, sorry, can’t help as I didn’t need to touch my collectors. All I can suggest is contact Solarhart or if you know any plumbers you could ask. That’s how I learnt what to do.... cheers Paul
I have a Solar hart solar the panels alone will not heat the water to sufficient temperature. The intermixed has been replaced, any suggestions, please?
Hi. Unfortunately I am not a plumber so unable to help you.
Hi Paul
Did you buy your parts through a plumbing supply shop or did you buy from Solahart?
Just sourced them from my local plumbers supply place, the same one the plumbers use.
@@2ardMr ok . Thanks
You wouldn’t happen to have part numbers to suggest, or a rebuild kit reference list, would you? I just don’t want to get everything apart before I start ordering parts...
Hi, sorry I don't have any part numbers, just had a chat with my local wholesaler, I was able to purchase things I might need and was able to return them unused for a refund.
Paul's Media Services That’s incredible, I can’t find parts for this thing anywhere. I had it put in 12 years ago and it’s failing and running around the clock, our electric bill is insane. I shut the breakers for this off and deal with cold water most the time until I have time to install our new tankless. Hopefully the cost is around the same before this one failed. ... Thank you for the video!!
@@derekthomasgriffin
Hi Derik
I may have the same problem you had, it appears the heat transfer system has lost its fluid the pipes used to be boiling water temperature and no longer that hot although its quite a hot day today.
What I'd like to know is where to fill the ethylene glycol outer cylinder..
We have rain water and the heating element went a few years ago so I replaced it, it was not as long as that one I thought although I may be wrong on that, it seemed very clean because of the rain water but that's not my problem, it's where to fill the heat exchange outer jacket?
I just realized that Solahart is an anagram for Rathalos.
I play too much Monster Hunter.
tank y ou vmtch from moroco
Had sola plumbers come to repair every 4 years no one did this to my tank yet cost over 500 dollars for service over 20 years 1 new tank 2 new collectors still no hot water they said leave heater on all day which worked but the sun has no import till element gives out
Our water here in Alice Springs, Australia has a high level of calcium. This is the main reason I have to do this task every 10 years or so. My heater is 15 years old and still working on solar fine. Never needed to touch the solar panels and as the tank is enameled on the inside it is unlikely to corrode (the sacrificial rod is important to maintain). Sounds like the people serving your unit are in it for the money…. Wonder what do they do for $500. For example $125 per hour = 4 hours work. What I did was about 4 hours work.
Sir where the tri-o valve and CRV?
Hi Sai, unfortunately I am not a plumber so unable to help. It seems to me the only things to regularly service is the temperature mixer/filter and operate the relief valve as shown in the video.
Great video but cant hear you because of the music..
Sorry to hear that, might be worth watching it on a different device. Would be interesting if it is the same result. (Thinking type of speakers/setup?) Hope I was still able to help you with your hot water system. Cheers Paul.
Removing anode you said without damaging your , couldn't hear what you could damage
Malcolm Canning Yes, sorry, I didn’t make that as clear as I should of. The anode is so tight if you emptied the water out first, then went to undo the anode the whole tank would move and rock around. Possibly damaging other things/pipes ect....
@@2ardMr thanks. Attempting this weekend
I am sure you can still buy handbook with all info you need on woodprix. Just google it.
Parts Supplier? Website, email and phone number?
Saya _xKisaragi Hi, I just went to a plumbing wholesaler in my local town, Alice Springs, Australia. Cheers Paul.
Figured someone would say this so might as well be me. Not a great idea taking this on.
Firstly electrical and plumbing are licensed trades for a good reason. Damage caused while attempting this can cause electrical fires, water damage (even inside the house) or you could just simply strip a thread making tank repair impossible. There is too much that can go wrong, and the cost of repairs or tank replacement far outweighs any savings.
Sometimes it's best to leave it to the professionals!
Just because you don’t have a license doesn’t mean you don’t have the knowledge. I’m a carpenter, I do everything, I have licensed mates that vouch for me.
Also people can have a go on their own homes if it saves them a shit load of money and not having to trust a tradie, cause there are some dodgy bastards out there.
Clearly you're not a lisemced plumber
Indeed, I am not. The right to repair is a balance between doing something your-self safely (using common sense) and knowing when to leave it to a profeshional. Unfortunately when you read some of these comments it seems not all professionals are the same. A number of times I have a plummer work on my system. (Relief valve replacement for example)
Licensed is code word for extortionist when talking about Australian tradies.
Thankyou for the video very helpful