The OM Solar System — Collecting Solar Heat Under the Roof

OM Solar's Integrated Roofing System The system consists of the following five components.

The OM Solar system is a passive solar-based system that primarily uses air heated by the sun as its heat-transfer medium. The system does not use circulating hot water to heat living spaces as in more common water-based solar heating systems. Being air-based, the system therefore eliminates the risk of hot water leakage inherent in the heat transfer portions of the water-based systems. The roof system includes panels made of tempered glass and metal that offer no other special features — their function is simply to raise the temperature of the air passing under them.

The OM Solar system creates a narrow air passage sandwiched between the unfinished surface of the roof and the roof's finishing material. As it heats, external air inducted through an air inlet rises up under the finished roof into an external ridge duct. The accumulated hot air then passes through an air-handling unit.

Hot air temperatures obtained by this process will obviously vary depending on the particular climate and weather conditions, but temperatures between 122 and 158Fº (50 and 70Cº) have been registered even in cold regions.

Heat collection with the OM Solar system can include the heat provided by windows, depending on their appropriateness to the local climate. Window-provided heat is taken into account in thermal calculations prior to system installation.

In some areas of the world — the Middle East, for example — windows might be eliminated because of the sunlight's intensity. But even in very hot and sunny locations, homes may need to be heated in the cooler winter months. In such cases, roof heat collection can be carried out using the OM Solar system's roof panels and some control measures.

Although the OM Solar system is safer than conventional hot water-based solar heating systems, the system still contains some elements that could be harmful in the event of accidents or misuse. For example, users are cautioned that 1) the system can include a hot water supply that could leak in the event of an accident or misuse; 2) the closed-loop heat transfer subsystem for the hot water supply may use glycol which is potentially harmful if accidentally ingested; and 3) the system is not intended to function as a ventilator for homes containing harmful vapors such as smoke, paint fumes, and the like.

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