In what has to be the best news of the year for heating, cooling (HVAC) and plumbing contractors, Santa Fe, New Mexico-based SolarLogic LLC (not to be confused with firms in Australia, the UK and Glendora, California) now offers proprietary technology to streamline the process of installing water-based solar heating systems.
SolarLogic was founded in 2008 by Bristol Stickney, a partner and technical director at Cedar Mountain Solar Systems in Santa Fe, the company that SolarLogic CEO Boaz Soifer describes as providing a breeding ground for a lot of the research and development that led to the creation of Stickney’s new venture.
Stickney has been active in the solar heating industry for more than 30 years. His new company not only offers technical expertise in the solar heating field but also manufactures the product, and the company (in Stickney’s own words) hopes to lead the way in “creating seamless, easy-to-install solar heating systems”.
In fact, the City of Santa Fe’s Economic Development Division has so much confidence in Stickney’s expertise and vision, it recently awarded his startup a grant of $30,000, funds it is certain will advance green energy and local job creation in Santa Fe.
Should you doubt Stickney’s expertise, read his recent article in Plumbing Engineer’s digital version, or read his equally technical article on principles of good solar hydronic design.
Fast forward to the two products that help HVAC and plumbing firms install solar hot-water heating systems. The first is the SolarLogic Integrated Controller (SLIC), a pre-fabricated, integrated control system for hydronic installations; the second is the SolarLogic Assisted Solar Heating Design (SLASH-D), a Web-based design tool that allow individuals with heating/plumbing expertise but no special training in hydronic heating systems to design, bid and install said systems without calling in outside engineering experts who – for all their savvy – add dollars and days to design and installation time, meaning higher (and perhaps prohibitive) prices for consumers and less time in which to complete jobs for heating/plumbing firms.
The systems range from solar hot water for bathing and washing dishes to pool-heating solar devices and in-floor or register-mounted hot water heating for homes and businesses. Using SolarLogic’s tools, installers can simply input the data, install the system per SLASH-D specs, and then program the controller to run the system.
There are, of course, other integrated control systems, and there may also be Web-based design platforms for hydronic heating systems, but the combination of the two seems especially fortuitous in promoting solar water heating for homes and businesses, providing expertise at both ends of the process.
SolarLogic’s mission, according to Stickney, is to spur the adoption of residential and commercial solar hydronic heating systems worldwide. The company, which currently employs five, is projected to grow to 18 employees within the next five years.
According to Kate Noble, special projects administrator with the Economic Development Department, the city anticipates significant job growth as heating/plumbing installers take advantage of the Web-based design and control system.
“This has the potential to blow the market wide open by eliminating the need for specialists to customize systems.”