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Solar Garage Heater using pop cans? Plan & video...

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
A friend of mine from my gun forum built this. I'm not so sure I like it. Would not it be more efficient to operate if the cans were replaced with tubes filled with anti-freeze? They might take longer to warm up but would hold the heat longer. I also think he needed to make his panel more weatherproof with better seals/insulation around the edges.

He also is planning to use manual valves to seal it off but I think it would be far better if he used louvers that were pressure sensitive, when the solar panel is not running the fan, the louvers would be closed. I have suggested those changes, which he is considering.

For your consideration:

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50inx81in 235 cans.
This is a work in progress.2 inch intake and exhaust.The reason for the size is the cover is going to be half of an old sliding glass door.

The plan is to place this on the south side of the house and run 2 inch pipe from the floor level(intake)and run 2in pipe close to the ceiling for the exhaust.

The idea came from [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9bBnRQWRro"]Soda pop beer can Solar Powered heater furnace panel - Part 3 - YouTube[/ame]
 

jimbo

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
Is he filling the cans with something? It seems to me that the only collection in the cans would be what the aluminum would hold. I would use much more mass.
 

muleman

Gone But Not Forgotten
GOLD Site Supporter
As a convection air heater they work rather well. I saw 2 small window units in a house and they kept a fair sized room very cozy on a bitter cold day. You would be surprised at the amount of heat they discharge on a sunny day.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Is he filling the cans with something? It seems to me that the only collection in the cans would be what the aluminum would hold. I would use much more mass.

The cans are empty. There are a couple holes punched in the bottom of each can, and then 1 added hole in the top, in addition to the drink opening. The holes are NOT lined up. The air turbulence as the air is pushed through the cans acts as a heat sink to transfer the collected heat. It only operates in the daytime when its sunny. Thermal mass, would extend it to operate for maybe an hour past sundown, but then the fan would also need a battery system to power it past sundown and it would need to be set up to run on a thermostat.




As a convection air heater they work rather well. I saw 2 small window units in a house and they kept a fair sized room very cozy on a bitter cold day. You would be surprised at the amount of heat they discharge on a sunny day.
From everything I can tell it actually should work very well, but only while the sun is shining. No thermal mass = no residual heat for extended hours. It would certainly work to make a garage or workshop much more comfortable in the winter for daytime work. If the shop is well insulated it would obviously keep things inside from freezing, even if it only is working for daylight hours.
 

squerly

Supported Ben Carson
GOLD Site Supporter
I was researching these a couple of years ago as a heat source for a 15X18 room inside my barn. The ones that worked the best were built in channels. Cool air enters the bottom and is channeled across the first row of cans. Then up into the second channel of cans and then up into the third, etc. The air gets warmer and warmer as it works its way up, helped along with a small computer fan. The fan can be put on the bottom to blow air into the bottom cans and then natural convection pulls the heat on through the rest. Or the fan can be attached at the top of the last channel where it helps by pulling the heated air out of the cans and out into the room.


Unless your going to pay ample attention to manually turning the system on and off, you should use a thermostat to shut the fan(s) off, otherwise you will wind up pumping a lot of cold air into your room when the sun goes down. A gate valve of some sort should be in the design too, otheriwse the unit may find itself working in reverse, with all the warm air inside the room flowing back out of the building and into the outside world.
 

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
GOLD Site Supporter
A fan wired thru a photo swtch would only operate the system in day light. It allows you to run the air down instead of up. More efficient.

A small selenoid damper on the top or bottom, wired to the same switch, will close the system to the house after the sun goes down.
Proper placement of the switch would delay startup until the sun had actually warmed the box. Or, you coud use a simple delay timer.

I built one similar and put it on my Bolingbrooke house back in 1975. Worked very well on the south side during winter when the sun angle was low.

I used salvaged aluminum tubing, and layed it all out on a sheet of aluminum flashing, but the same principles apply.

I often thought of doing some that were connected to my cold air returns. Thus getting the heat run throughout the house. Not sure how that would work out.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
He is planning on using a fan.

The fan would be operated by a solar panel so it would only operate when it is actually heating air.

There will be some sort of louvers or gate valves on both ends.
 
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