Hot Water Diversion: CATCH Power

CATCH Power is a start-up Australian Company that is developing intelligent hot water diversion systems to channel surplus solar energy into heating hot water.

Australian designed, engineered, and manufactured, CATCH units will work with any solar PV system and resistive element (electric) hot-water or heating system.

Any surplus energy from your solar PV system will be diverted to your hot water tank to heat water. If there is a shortfall of energy required to heat your water sufficiently, CATCH will source the remaining power from your regular hot-water Tariff.

This will allow you to maximise your solar self-consumption, reduce overall household electricity usage, further reduce your carbon print, and save you money.

CATCH hot water diversion systems come with a standard 2-year Warranty that can be extended up to 5 years by registering online.

There are 4 models currently available: Blue CATCH, 3P Blue Catch, GEN 2 Green Catch, Green Catch

 Green CATCH

Green CATCH is the basic diverter model of these clever hot water diversion systems. It has been specifically designed for those without internet connection.

Green CATCH is installed in your Meter box. It utilises a user-adjustable dial to determine how much off-peak/ Tariff 41 power to use to start the heating process. If required, Green CATCH is able to override the setting on the dial if required to ensure a continuous supply of hot water.

Blue CATCH

Blue Catch is currently the most advanced solar hot water system on the market. It contains an intelligent adaptive learning algorithm that provides sophisticated analysis of weather forecasts and system performance data to ensure the most effective use of your surplus solar, and to ensure greatest return on investment

Blue CATCH Hot Water Diversion System

Blue CATCH is comprised of two parts – the Diverter, and the Communicator. The Diverter is installed in your meter box, and manages diversion of excess solar energy into your hot water system. The Communicator is installed next to your internet router and provides weather information from the internet to the Diverter. It also provides monitoring of both the unit and solar system to ensure everything is working as it should.

Blue CATCH requires continuous internet connection, and uses 19kB of data per day.

The system can be either manually or remotely adjusted at any time.

For further information see the Catch Power website.

Green CATCH Datasheet
Blue CATCH Datasheet

For a detailed, Tasmania-specific analysis on the pros and cons of hot water diversion systems, please refer to this FactSheet by Jack Gilding of  the Tasmanian Renewable Energy Alliance:

Hot Water Diversion Systems in Tasmania