Solar power is the only energy resource that can be plundered at will.

Water-based solar thermal collectors outperform photovoltaic panels by approximately three times in energy yield per square metre, at lower cost.

Two-thirds of a home's energy use is normally for heating. Let's use the sun whenever we can.

Drainback solar

The Privateer solar system re-invents drain-back solar collectors. We reduce cost, increase performance, improve reliability, reduce maintenance, remove mechanical complexity, lengthen product life, and speed up payback.

Our system has one moving part: the pump impeller. It uses water, not antifreeze. Because the collector's default state is dry, it cannot freeze or boil. It needs no expensive pressure vessel and requires almost no maintenance.

Our approach

We combine our design of hardware and software with novel engineering and OEM smart pumps. We simplify the mechanics but increase performance. We couple this with all-copper collectors for high performance and long life.

All-copper flat plate collectors eliminate galvanic corrosion risks between dissimilar metals. Copper's thermal conductivity of 401 W/mK is roughly 25 times that of stainless steel, maximising heat transfer to the working fluid.

Keep it simple

The overall goal is to reduce the cost of the system so that it pays for itself without the need for government subsidies. Simple design reduces cost, reduces failure modes, and increases longevity.

Security and independence

Our products are local-control-only devices. Self-running; no internet connection required. Configurable with any device that can connect via a serial terminal. No application. No operating system. No cloud. No subscription.

All embedded code is ours. There is nothing to hack, nothing to subscribe to, and nothing that stops working when a company folds or decides to change their terms of service.