10. Will the Apricus solar collector be a fire hazard during hot, dry weather?
No. The Apricus solar collector’s components are all high temperature rated and non-flammable so even during strong sunlight with the circulation pump turned off (stagnation), the system will not catch alight or give off any sparks. The majority of the solar collector’s components are stainless steel, aluminium, glass or glass wool. The manifold outlet should be fitted with a temperature relief valve, which will prevent the manifold temperature from exceeding 99oC / 212oF.

11. Can the Apricus solar collector heat water to a high enough temperature?
Yes, in good weather the Apricus solar collector can bring water to boiling point. Generally this is not necessary and so the system should be designed to provide a daily temperature rise of around 25-30oC (45-54oF) in the summer. Sizing a domestic system that can bring the cold water up to 60oC/141oF in a single day is not logical, because if hot water is not used for one day, the following day the system will be boiling and dumping hot water via the temperature relief valve. This is both a waste of energy and water! Please sensibly size solar water heating system to ensure optimal performance and minimal wastage of water.

12. What maintenance of the solar collector is required?
Under normal circumstances no maintenance of the system is required. Due to the shape of the tubes regular rainfall and wind should keep the tubes clean. Should a tube even be broken it should be replaced. This, however, is an inexpensive and easy job. Any "handy" person can install a new tube (while adhering to local health and safety regulations). Apricus solar collectors can operate with several broken tubes, however the efficiency will be reduced slightly.

13. Can Apricus solar collectors be used for a large scale hot water production?
Yes. Apricus solar collectors can be connected in series or parallel to provide large scale hot water production for a commercial settings such as a school, hotel or office building. There is really no limit to the size of the system, however collectors must be installed in banks of no more than 150 tubes (in series), otherwise the water may boil.

14. Can I heat my swimming pool or spa using an Apricus solar collector?
Apricus collectors are high temperature collectors, and are therefore ideal for spas, as the volume of water is small and temperature requirements high. For swimming pools, however, the volume of water is large and the temperature rise required is only several degrees. The cost of heating a pool using solar tube collectors (for domestic purposes) may be prohibitively high. For large scale swimming pools, however, Apricus collectors may be an extremely viable supplement to gas or electricity.