Utilising the solar power for heating water not only saves you the electricity bills but also helps you in contributing to greener environment. Solar water heaters are best especially when you stay in a warmer climate. For those interested in building diy solar power projects, a diy solar water heater would be the best to start with.
There are different types of solar water heaters available. DIY solar water heaters can be purchased as a set, which once can assemble as per the instructions given or build the whole unit on your own. One of the important considerations which one must take into account when building a diy solar water heater is the location of the heater. By building your own diy solar water heater, you can definitely save a lot of your hard earned money.
One of the simplest and most common diy solar water heaters that can be built is flat plate collector. This type of diy solar water heater requires a tank which is painted a matte black colour. Painting with black colour helps in absorption of maximum sunlight, thus making the heating effective. The tank is then placed in a big glass container. The glass container helps in trapping the heat from the sunlight that cannot be directly absorbed by the tank. Alternatively, one can use a box made of plywood and then place the glass panels around the box.
If you have a little prior experience in plumbing, it can prove to be helpful now. All that you need to do is connect the tank to the water supply tank and the water outlet or a conventional heating system. Connect the incoming water piping from the water supply at the bottom of the tank and the outgoing water pipe to regular heating system from the top of the tank.
Although this diy solar water heater is quite effective, it works well only in hot weathers or warmer climates. For places where the climates in cold weather drop to a freezing point, this would not be a wiser choice. The water in the pipes may freeze causing the piping to burst. Hence when using this in cold climate, it is essential that they are kept empty in cold climates.
A better diy solar water heater for cold climates would be closed loop and drainback systems. The closed loop diy solar water heater may require one or more tanks depending on the type of diy closed loop water heater you are going to build. This type of diy solar water heater requires building a loop of solar collector panels through which the water is circulated for the purpose of heating. In this diy solar water heater, little amount of water is heated at one time and hence the water stays hot for a longer time.
On the other hand there are also diy tankless solar water heaters which involve combining solar energy system with the tankless water heater system. The diy tankless solar water heaters work best for houses which are occupied by a single person or a couple. However, when there are more people staying in the house, this diy tankless solar water heater may not be suitable since it takes more time to heat water using this system.
Solar energy can be utilised for heating the pool water as well. Building a diy solar pool heater can help in saving a lot of electric power consumption. Diy solar pool heater can be built by connecting in series the solar panels or collectors and the panels are plumbed into the pool system. When building a solar pool heater, it is important that the size of the solar pool heater be atleast 75 percent of the area of the pool.
Having a solar shower can also add to saving energy consumption. DIY solar showers can be built in the backyards. Diy solar showers in the simplest way can be made by connecting the shower head to a pipe which is coiled in the sun.
DIY solar water heaters, if built and installed appropriately can work well for around 10 to 20 years. Solar water heaters can help in the long run by saving the electricity consumption, thereby reducing the power bills as well as saving our dear earth.
Solar Water Heating--Revised & Expanded Edition: A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Water and Space Heating Systems (Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series)
DIY Solar Water Heaters:
There are different types of solar water heaters available. DIY solar water heaters can be purchased as a set, which once can assemble as per the instructions given or build the whole unit on your own. One of the important considerations which one must take into account when building a diy solar water heater is the location of the heater. By building your own diy solar water heater, you can definitely save a lot of your hard earned money.
Most common diy solar water heaters:
One of the simplest and most common diy solar water heaters that can be built is flat plate collector. This type of diy solar water heater requires a tank which is painted a matte black colour. Painting with black colour helps in absorption of maximum sunlight, thus making the heating effective. The tank is then placed in a big glass container. The glass container helps in trapping the heat from the sunlight that cannot be directly absorbed by the tank. Alternatively, one can use a box made of plywood and then place the glass panels around the box.
If you have a little prior experience in plumbing, it can prove to be helpful now. All that you need to do is connect the tank to the water supply tank and the water outlet or a conventional heating system. Connect the incoming water piping from the water supply at the bottom of the tank and the outgoing water pipe to regular heating system from the top of the tank.
Although this diy solar water heater is quite effective, it works well only in hot weathers or warmer climates. For places where the climates in cold weather drop to a freezing point, this would not be a wiser choice. The water in the pipes may freeze causing the piping to burst. Hence when using this in cold climate, it is essential that they are kept empty in cold climates.
A better diy solar water heater for cold climates:
A better diy solar water heater for cold climates would be closed loop and drainback systems. The closed loop diy solar water heater may require one or more tanks depending on the type of diy closed loop water heater you are going to build. This type of diy solar water heater requires building a loop of solar collector panels through which the water is circulated for the purpose of heating. In this diy solar water heater, little amount of water is heated at one time and hence the water stays hot for a longer time.
DIY tankless solar water heaters:
On the other hand there are also diy tankless solar water heaters which involve combining solar energy system with the tankless water heater system. The diy tankless solar water heaters work best for houses which are occupied by a single person or a couple. However, when there are more people staying in the house, this diy tankless solar water heater may not be suitable since it takes more time to heat water using this system.
Diy solar pool heater:
Solar energy can be utilised for heating the pool water as well. Building a diy solar pool heater can help in saving a lot of electric power consumption. Diy solar pool heater can be built by connecting in series the solar panels or collectors and the panels are plumbed into the pool system. When building a solar pool heater, it is important that the size of the solar pool heater be atleast 75 percent of the area of the pool.
Having a solar shower can also add to saving energy consumption. DIY solar showers can be built in the backyards. Diy solar showers in the simplest way can be made by connecting the shower head to a pipe which is coiled in the sun.
DIY solar water heaters, if built and installed appropriately can work well for around 10 to 20 years. Solar water heaters can help in the long run by saving the electricity consumption, thereby reducing the power bills as well as saving our dear earth.
Solar Water Heating--Revised & Expanded Edition: A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Water and Space Heating Systems (Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series)