Solar plumbed backwards?

[shadowman]

We have lived in our house for two years now and have enjoyed the in-ground pool with its rooftop solar heating. After doing extensive reading on solar systems I have come to the conclusion that ours is plumbed backwards. Based on the thermometers installed in the vertical pipes on the side of the house, the hot water is coming off the bottom of the panels and the cooler water is going to the top. It gives a 5 to 7 degree rise on a sunny day so it is doing a pretty good job as it is. If I dig up the pipe run I can swap the connections at some point. Should I bother or should I leave well enough alone?

[matt4x4]

Since the water is being pumped through, it doesn't matter.
The only time it would matter is if you've got an airlock, at which point you would purge at the highest point with the feed at the lowest, but most times, air will work itself out of solar panels all on its own.
If you want to avoid digging things up, you could just switch the two tie ins near the pump on the exposed plumbing.

[shadowman]

Yes, that was the first place I looked to do the switch, but my equipment shed is so crowded in that corner that it would be easier to dig up the pipes. The panels drain nicely and the air is purged into the pool when the valve turns on so I will probably leave it alone. I thought maybe I could get a jump start on the swim season in the spring if I could get a few more degrees out of it. Our western Oregon swim season is short enough as it is! :)

[CallMeIshmael]

This is reassuring since I'm about to be installing ours next week. Good to know there's a fair margin of error- JK!
Glad the systems working out for you!