On the diy thermal solar panel side an affordable and relatively easy solution would to build your own solar water heater with a coil of black pvc pipe.
Build a simple solar heater.
Learn how to build a solar pool heater in just a few hours.
It s easy to build and it works very well.
Build a simple solar air heater this low cost solar air heater plan lets you turn any south wall into a source of free heat.
Our goal for the solar pool heater we want to be able to increase the number of weeks months we can use the pool.
If the building to be heated is well insultated a solar heater such as this can lift the temperature by a significant number of degrees.
Propane pool heaters for an average 400 000 btu heater with a price tag of over 2200 it will cost you about 10 per hour to run assuming the heater consumes around four gallons of propane in an hour of use and propane averages about 2 50 per gallon as of the time of this writing it will heat your pool about 5 degrees in that amount of time.
That is a rather simple matter of having a coil of tube facing south to pump water through and then return to your pool.
A passive solar heater is a simple thing you can make to help heat your home.
It really is quite simple and easy to make.
With enough building insulation this can be a primary heat source with a secondary needed for cloudy days.
This heater works in a similar way to a solar oven but is simpler and doesn t get as hot.
A solar powered diy pool heater is a must for above ground pools in a cold climate.
It obviously will not work at night but it can reduce heating costs during the day.
We can make it sturdier than the other budget options.
This is a solar air convection heater for my garage that is powered by the low angle winter sun.
After looking at all the solar pool heaters available we decided to make our own because we can make it for much cheaper.
Pictured above is a simple small passive solar heater made from recycled aluminium drinks cans and used to heat a garage.
By gary reysa december 2006 january 2007.