Yes. A PVT (photovoltaic-thermal) hybrid panel produces electricity and hot water simultaneously from the same surface: PV cells on top generate power while an absorber behind them captures heat into a fluid circuit. The technology is mature — Solimpeks has produced PV-T panels since 2008 — and one PVT panel delivers 3–4 times the total energy of a plain PV panel of the same size when the heat is used.
Is there really a solar panel that makes both electricity and hot water?
Yes — it is called a PVT panel (photovoltaic-thermal), and it is a proven product category, not a concept. A PVT hybrid collector looks like a normal PV module from the street, but behind its solar cells sits a heat absorber with fluid channels, so the panel wires into your inverter like PV and pipes into your hot water system like a solar collector. PVT collectors are certified under the same Solar Keymark scheme as conventional thermal collectors, and IEA SHC market reporting counts well over a million square metres installed worldwide.
How does one panel do both jobs?
Solar cells convert only around 20% of sunlight into electricity — the rest turns into heat inside the panel. A standard PV module throws that heat away to the wind; a PVT module collects it. A pump moves glycol or water through channels bonded to the back of the cells, carries the heat down to a cylinder or heat pump, and returns cool fluid to the roof. That cooling is a bonus in itself: the cells run 10–20 °C cooler than in an uncooled module and produce roughly 3–8% more electricity as a result. The full layer-by-layer mechanism is explained in how PVT hybrid panels work.
How does a PVT panel compare with fitting PV or solar thermal alone?
| Option | Electricity | Hot water | Roof area needed for both outputs |
|---|---|---|---|
| PV modules only | Yes (~20% conversion) | No — needs an immersion or diverter | Full roof for electricity only |
| Solar thermal only | No | Yes (60–70% conversion to heat) | Full roof for heat only |
| Separate PV + thermal | Yes | Yes | Two separate arrays competing for space |
| PVT hybrid | Yes (+3–8% from cooling) | Yes, simultaneously | One array — 3–4× total energy per m² |
Where roof space is generous, separate arrays remain a valid choice — that trade-off is examined in PVT vs separate PV and solar thermal. Where space is the constraint, the hybrid wins on total energy per square metre.
Who is a two-in-one solar panel right for?
PVT suits buildings with a genuine year-round heat demand and limited roof area: family homes with real hot water consumption, hotels and gyms with showers running daily, swimming pools, and — increasingly — homes pairing the panels with a brine/water heat pump, where the PVT field replaces the outdoor unit as the heat source (see how a PVT panel feeds a heat pump). If you have no use for the heat, plain PV is the simpler buy; the honest limitations are listed in the disadvantages of PVT panels.
How long has the technology been on the market?
Hybrid collectors have existed for decades in research and niche products, and serial manufacturing is now well established: Solimpeks has been producing PV-T hybrid panels in Konya since 2008 and serves customers in 96+ countries. The current PV-T 590 pairs a 590 Wp electrical rating with Solar Keymark thermal certification through Kiwa Cermet Italia (licence 16918 Rev.0) and PV certification to IEC 61215/61730-1. In other words: a panel that makes electricity and hot water at the same time is something you can buy, certify and subsidise today, not a laboratory promise.
Frequently asked questions
Does making hot water reduce the electricity output?
No — it increases it. Drawing heat away cools the PV cells by 10–20 °C, and cooler silicon converts more efficiently, so a PVT panel typically yields roughly 3–8% more electricity than the same cells left uncooled. Both outputs run at the same time without competing.
Can I connect a PVT panel to my existing hot water cylinder?
Usually yes, via a solar coil or an external heat exchanger, exactly as with a conventional solar thermal retrofit. A twin-coil or solar-ready cylinder makes the connection straightforward; otherwise the cylinder is swapped as part of the installation.
How much hot water does one PVT panel produce?
Output depends on climate and season: in summer a small field can cover most of a household's hot water, while in winter it pre-heats the cylinder and a boiler or heat pump tops up. Delivery temperatures of roughly 25–60 °C are typical depending on conditions and system design.
Is a PVT panel the same as a solar water heater with PV on top?
Functionally close, but it is one engineered laminate, not two products stacked. The absorber is bonded directly to the rear of the cells so heat transfers efficiently, and the whole module is tested as one unit under both PV standards (IEC 61215) and collector standards (ISO 9806 / Solar Keymark).