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Simple pool solar heater

12K views 52 replies 13 participants last post by  oh'mike 
#1 ·
trying to formulate a plan for building a pool heater. Please add or critique as needed. Dumb questions ahead..:)

A simple box, plywood back, 2x6 for a frame.

Flex black tubing. As small in diameter as I can find for cheap. Leave in a coil

Plexiglass for a lid. Can that stuff be cut easily with a circular saw...will it be sharp.

Is there a better material for a lid ?? cheaper and easier ??

Am I missing something ?...it sounds too cheap and easy

Thanks
 
#2 ·
I made one ,many years back,along those lines--

Plywood back---black garden hose--2x4 frame---and an old patio door.

It got so hot that I had to add a mixing valve set up so all the pool water did not enter the heater.

Worked for years ---it was placed on the ground facing the sun and I used 2x4 props to angle it up ---

To secure the hose to the backing--I drilled holes and used nylon zip ties.
 
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#51 ·
Great idea.



Great idea. Simple. But it looses a lot of heat in the very hot water at the outlet. If you increase the flow, the total BTU collected is MORE, because the water is not so hot that it radiates away the heat (which you discovered it does at night) The water might only be a few degrees warmer, but the flow is much greater.
 
#4 ·
Just how big a pool is this?
Going to take one really big panel to have any effect on the pools temp.
Plexiglass will turn yellow and craze, use Lexan instead.
Yes it can be cut with a table saw, just leave the protective plastic on it when cutting or drillng.
I'd use black heavy duty garden hose. That way when it does not work out you'll still have a nice hose.
How do you plan on cirulating the water?
I would think you would want a low CFM pump so the water has time heat up.
May want to Google "solor pool heater" and see how a real heater is designed.
 
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#6 ·
Thanks for the tips everyone,

Its just a 21 foot above ground.
I had a commerical solar heater for a few years..but too many leaks and its toast now. So I will connect it to the regular pump and filter

Good idea about the black garden hose and the black paint.

Thanks
 
#8 ·
The one I made worked great---simple tools---cheap---and over heated a pool about the size of yours,until I added valves that allowed much of the water to bypass the heater when it was not needed.
 
#10 ·
Do you cover it at night? Covering it at night will do wonders for keep it warm.

I third the garden hose....the stuff you were talking about was too small.

If the collector is going to be far enough away....use real glass....it's cheaper than plexi....just breaks easier.

I've actually been amazed at how cheap it is to have glass tempered.
 
#11 ·
There are only a few months usually when the nights stay warm enough to rely just on the blanket. By mid August the nights get so cool that the water can't recover enough to get in. And June this year has so far been a dud.

I'm not worried about overheating. On the store bought one Ive been using it had a bypass valve that I never had to use. Water barely ever saw past 88/90.

It was a series of tiny tubes so the water would pass slower like Joe has suggested. Corrugated plastic. No glass...too many crazy people fooling around, plus I'd like to keep it there through the rest of the year. ..(Flying balls, hockey pucks. lacrosse balls)
 

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#12 ·
The garden hose idea sounds good and cost effective. I even have a glass window left over from my old kitchen door. My only question though is when you step down the diameter from the 1 1/2" pump hose to 5/8" garden hose, won't that cause the pool pump to overwork?
 
#13 ·
Useally not on discharge side due they are limited on " head " pressure so just watch the height when you put up the solar panels due some swimming pool pumps are low pressure on purpose ( IIRC useally less than 30 PSIG )

But I will suggest to you that add a thermometer on discharge side to see how hot it get and you may want to add a mixer or sorta like bypass valve to throttle a bit to intermix to drop the tempture a little.

I know some of you readers may recall Scuba Dave in this fourm he did have solar pool heating system and he have pretty good details on them so you may want to take a look at it what he did to his pool system.

Merci,
Marc
 
#14 ·
Pool heating is a very good solar application. The systems are simple and relatively inexpensive. Pool systems usually use simple, low cost, unglazed plastic collectors. The pool itself is the thermal storage for the system, and the pump you already use for filtering pool water will also circulate water through the solar collectors. All of this leads to inexpensive systems -- some of the simplest solar pool heating systems cost as little as $100.
 
#16 ·
You are doing it! Bravo!

Jim and Creeper--I left the original piping and added two Ts to feed the hoses--one for 'in' one for 'out'--each one had a shut off so the heater could be isolated in case of a failure.

A ball valve was installed between the two Ts---this allowed for tempering--wide open--little water went through the hose--partially closed--lots of water went through the heater--fully closed would be bad---to much restriction for the pump.
 
#18 ·
I see a problem---I should have mentioned--that I carefully laid out the hose so that it was coiled side by side--drilling the backer board and zip tying it--the hose was flat to the backer and coiled like a watch spring--

this gave full exposure to the sun,no hose shaded by any other----it took a while to drill all the holes for the tie straps--
 
#20 ·
I used 150 feet---the more the merrier--

What you want is a box with a wood frame--plywood back--2x4 frame--just a bit bigger than the door--then an outside 1x6 frame to act as a lip to hold the door.

You are trying to get heat to the hose from direct sun on the top and heat from the black plywood on the back of the hose---kind of like a hose laying on a black top driveway---
 
#21 ·
Translation....the more hose you have exposed to the sun, the more heat it will pick up.

I'm thinking a troft about 20' long and 4' wide would work really well. It's all about surface area...the more the merrier....
 
#23 ·
Mike, I would like to see pictures of some of your stuff, but as usual you make your instructions easy to follow.
I have in my minds eye exactly what you mean...its the execution that may be the tricky part:laughing:

I will post a picture of mine when its completed
 
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