[Patrick]

Originally Posted by Xringer

Pre-heating your water is a good idea, but not cheap..I'm using 500w of PV to add some BTUs to my hot water..

http://ecorenovator.org/forum/solar-...eat-water.html

http://ecorenovator.org/forum/projec...r-project.html

It might work pretty well on an old hot water heater that has good insulation.
My system is leaky, sending heat up the flue, which you don't have..

Some cheap thin-film panels could work for you at higher voltages,
so you may not need to invest in 12v elements..

Xringer, thanks for the reply. Since you seem to be into electrical a lot, do you have any idea if I can connect 12V DC to a 220V AC heating element (the submerged one in the tank)? Or could I connect a higher voltage DC to the 220V AC element?