On: Show HN: Homemade automated solar concentrator

[mapt]

Almost anything you can do with concentrated PV, I can do better with photovoltaic and a resistor immersed in the same thermal storage medium. It is wildly more versatile in the face of clouds and piping + insulation costs.

[remipch → mapt]

What do you mean by "better"? There are several aspects to consider.

Indeed the advantage of your photovoltaic solution is versatility in the face of clouds and lower mechanical costs.

But the drawback is the larger panel area, higher panel cost and probably shorter panel lifetime.

Photovoltaic efficiency is about 20%, while even low-cost mirrors reflect 90% of the energy.

It really depends on the specific application and the answer does not seem so obvious to me.