The Sunbank Story

Every company has a story of how it started and why it started. The motivation to make things happen. Sunbank is no different.

The Sunbank’s story starts in an unlikely place, the coalfields of West Virginia.

I grew up surrounded by verdant hills and people working hard to extract coal from them. I tended to appreciate the hills more for their trails to walk and cliffs to climb than the metric tonnage that could be extracted from them. I grew up watching steam billow from the cooling towers of power plants and wondering why I had asthma. I grew up surrounded by energy issues in a state that proudly “kept the lights on” and as a witness to the devastating price the people and environment in West Virginia pay for that pride.

With that history as a backdrop, it’s no surprise that like many people these days, I see energy and climate change as being one of the key issues of our time. Previous generations had their issues and future generations will no doubt have theirs. This is ours. So I decided that I wanted to work in alternative energy and make a positive impact.

Nicaragua

This led me to another unlikely place, the Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua, where the idea for Sunbank Solar was born.

In Bluefields, Nicaragua I volunteered for BlueEnergy for nine months in 2009. BlueEnergy is an non-governmental organization (NGO) with a different type of model: work with the local communities, get input and skip generations of fossil fuel burning technology that have polluted our world for the past several decades.

BlueEnergy is in a unique position because it is working in many communities that don’t already have an electric grid. These are remote rural communities, that would have diesel powered generators if getting the fuel weren’t so expensive. There’s not a lot of coal in Nicaragua.

What better opportunity for new technology and for alternative energy to take hold?

This process, skipping generations of technology, has happened all over the world. Another example is cell phone technology, which has arrived to places all over Africa that never had land lines.

It is an interesting paradox, that wealthy countries are actually held back in their adoption of new technology by the fact that they already have functional (yet obsolete) technology.

Bluefields, which is the region’s largest city, sits on Nicaragua’s famously remote Atlantic Coast. It’s so remote that there are no roads in or out. Your only choices for getting there are flying into the small airport or taking a speed boat for several hours down a river. This is also one of the most impoverished regions of the Western Hemisphere.

While here I worked with fellow volunteers from all over the world including the USA, Mexico, Australia, Argentina, Israel and France on rural electrification and water purification projects. The volunteers and local staff at BlueEnergy build wind turbines with 14 foot blades, install solar panels and bio-sand water filtration systems, as well as explore new technology like the potential use of biogas stoves.

Solar Water Heating Prototype

When I was there, I wanted to investigate the efficacy of solar water heating. With a little bit of down time and lots of PVC piping, we designed, built and plumbed a thermosyphon solar water heating system for the volunteer housing. It is the simplest type of solar water heating systems; a passive design where PVC tubing painted black was fit into the corrugations of the metal roof. The water in these PVC tubes would heat up and create a natural convection loop (as heat rises) to circulate the cooler water into the collectors and the hot water into the tank. Although much higher technology and is available for use with municipal water systems in the US, The Sunbank uses many of these same principles in its passive design. This design feature, when compared to other types of solar water heaters, saves time and money. Passive solar water heaters eliminate the need for pumps therefore greatly, reducing maintenance issues and electricity consumption.

Imagine not taking a hot shower for more than a year. This system was a gift for volunteers who had been in Bluefields for that long. In fact, the system was such a hit that a solar hot tub made out of locally available materials like cinder blocks and old mattresses was built behind the house.

With the success of this system came the obvious question: “why isn’t this everywhere?” That question led to lots of research on the topic of solar water heating and the answer was that in some sense, it is. Solar water heating is the standard way to heat water in much of the world and the only logical and affordable way for many people. In many places that never had electric or gas water heaters, just like cell phone they skipped the generation of old tech and went directly to solar water heaters. In other places, like Hawaii and Japan, the price of electricity is simply too expensive to not use solar water heaters.

Exploring why solar water heating isn’t more popular in the US will be the topic of our next blog post. A big part of that answer, though, is that we stick with what we know. Plumbers stick with what they are comfortable installing and old tech tends to persist without a disruption. However, since 2011 Sunbanks have started to be installed all over the country. Those who have already found them and are taking solar showers have been very pleased.

And thankfully, they have no plans of going back to burning coal or gas to heat their water.

    EXCELLENT  
  16 reviews on
 
 
         
   nic maier 
 
 
 
   I don't write reviews but I have to tell others about James from Sunbank! We got an 80 gallon solar water heater and installed it ourselves. It works very well in Southern California. The installation was a little challenging for us, but James helped every step of the way and was even available to give us advice a full year after we had purchased the unit. He was always quick to respond with a thorough and helpful answer! I wish all businesses were run like Sunbank with people like James!
  
 
 
       
   Bob Billings 
 
 
 
   James, thanks for your continued support.  Our 40 gallon Sunbank water heater is the best. Installed in October of 2021 and we would not trade it. Our life off-grid has worked out well. Bob Billings
  
 
 
       
   Jonathan Bishop 
 
 
 
   My only regret is not getting the Sunbank sooner! I installed the 40 gallon system which has been perfect for 3 people. It has a 1500 watt element to heat the tank when the sun isn't shining and because of the low power demand, we are able to run it completely off-grid. James also took time to answer any questions I had and has been excellent to work with!
  
 
 
       
   Robert Thorlin 
 
 
 
   James and the team at Sunbank are exceptionally knowledgeable and willing to help.  Pre-sale and post-sale support was wonderful, even to the point of shipping a bunch of extra T-bolts I needed for my unique installation, bolts and shipping all at their cost.

I would bot hesitate to work with them again on anything... 10 stars if I could...

Mike
  
 
 
       
   Elsa Hennings 
 
 
 
   Living in the Mojave desert, I've wanted to "go solar" for our home's energy needs for a long time (I like free stuff). We put in a solar electric system in 2004, which has long since paid for itself, and bought a plug-in hybrid car to use our "free gas" several years ago.  I finally decided to heat our water with the sun, and after looking at a number of systems, I chose SunBank Solar based on it having no moving parts (I don't like to fix stuff). I mounted it on the ground since we have no shading on the other side of the wall from our old electric water heater, which made the plumbing pretty simple. For overheating protection in the desert, I painted half of each heating tube with reflective silver paint as James recommended (see photo on right), so when we leave on vacation I just rotate each tube to prevent heat absorption, turning the system off. The instructions provided, along with some how-to videos on youtube for using pex tubing, allowed me to get it all put together with no prior plumbing experience.  James was an invaluable resource when I had questions, which was often!  The system has now been running for over a month, quietly generating all the hot water we need!  I highly recommend not only the system but the company for the high quality materials and excellent product support!
  
 
 
       
   debra covey 
 
 
 
   Installed the Sunbank 40 water heater 12/2019. We didn’t install the controller until 8/2020 in case we needed it in the coming winter, but still haven’t needed supplemental heat in south Florida as of 4/2021.  Love this thing! Works great for the 2 of us in our small (1000 sq ft) home.  So glad we installed it.  Company was very responsive to all questions prior to ordering through install.  Highly recommend!
  
 
 
       
   Jim Feldhan 
 
 
 
   I rarely write reviews; however, I am very happy and impressed with the Sunbank solar hot water heater. It appears to be made from top quality material. I was replacing a Solarhart which was not a stainless steel tank and the heat exchanger developed a leak. I started with a 40-gallon system and installed it myself. I’m very handy with DIY projects.
The Instructions online were clear, and James was very helpful with any of the questions I had.
Being in Phoenix I thought a 40-gallon system would be enough. Once Witter arrived, I realized that I use more hot water than I thought and wanted to have 100% solar hot water. Thus, I installed a second 40-gallon system to boost my capacity to 80. I also install a couple of radiators to heat the master bath and home office allowing me to heater those room in the fall, winter, and spring with excess hot water.
In summary, I am very happy and give Sunbank 5 stars for quality and service.
  
 
 
       
   Timothy Clayton 
 
 
 
   I installed the Sunbank and the water temp went from 50F to 101F in 4 hours the 1st day.  By the 3rd day I was up to 160F.  It only loses approx 5 degrees overnight.  It is awesome!  James at Sunbank is one of the best support guys I've dealt with.  Definitely recommend buying this for solar hot water.
  
 
 
       
   Cuyler Smith 
 
 
 
   Our family purchased a 40 Gallon Sunbank Solar Water Heater just over a year ago and we are VERY pleased with its performance, ease of installation, and energy savings!  We have it installed on top of our spring house roof, located about 125 ft. away from our house.  When combined with the Federal Tax Credit and the savings associated with the solar offset of electrical usage for heating water, this Sunbank system quickly pays for itself and is a great investment.  I was able to install the system on my own and it has performed flawlessly during its first year of use.  James at Sunbank Solar has been more than helpful in responding to any questions I have, even after the initial purchase, which says a lot!  I would recommend the Sunbank Solar Water Heater to anyone wanting to save money and reduce our environmental impact!
  
 
 
       
   tutti hacking 
 
 
 
   I recently installed two 40 gallon Sunbank solar water heaters - one on my garage and one on my ADU. They have been awesome! Water is super hot and now I don't have any qualms washing my laundry with warm, solar heated water! I have wanted a Sunbank system for almost four years now, and James has patiently helped me through the process. I used my local solar panel installer to get the job done. Took 3 days to fully install (I did need some reinforcement for 2x4 rafters) and inspection was quick and easy. James steered me to a great structural engineer to get what I needed for City Planning. It feels great to have gotten rid of my natural (fracked) gas water heaters! And the 30% tax credit, along with the California Solar Initiative rebate, really makes it affordable.
  
 
 
  
 
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