Solar thermal water heating systems are the most popular renewable product on the market today. They utilise radiation from the sun, which is the most abundant energy source on the planet.

Solar thermal flat plate collectors or evacuated tubes are positioned on a building's roof. They absorb energy from sunlight and, in some cases, daylight. This energy is transferred to a fluid, which is circulated around the system and through a specially designed solar cylinder, heating the domestic hot water.

Solar cylinders can provide almost all of a home's hot water during the summer and about 50 per cent year round. Supplementary water heating is usually provided via a boiler and a conventional fuel like LPG - with high efficiency models increasing the energy and carbon savings.