The Market for Solar Water Heating Recent Research Sheds Light, Provides Direction Solar water heating technology is better than ever. Installation and maintenance costs continue to decline.
Aesthetics continue to improve.
And builders, architects, and energy providers continue to uncover creative financing mechanisms. Nevertheless, solar water heating technology is still not broadly accepted in the United States. Consumers remain wary of higher initial costs, and the energy and building industries have not embraced the technology to the point of advocacy. The solution may well simply involve correcting misperceptions and sharing information. Recent DOE-funded research addresses these and other questions.