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solar heating

Larry Weingarten
Larry Weingarten Member Posts: 3,679
in THE MAIN WALL
...polyethylene pipe has been used for years for a good low temperature, low cost, freeze resistant pool panel.

Yours, Larry

Comments

  • jim_14
    jim_14 Member Posts: 271
    what material works the best for a ome made pool solar heater

    what would conduct heat the best if left out in the sun:

    copper tubing, plastic pvc, rubber garden hose or cloth like garden hose?
  • Mad Dog_2
    Mad Dog_2 Member Posts: 7,692
    Could be wrong, but my gut would say...............

    Copper. Mad Dog

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  • Jack_21
    Jack_21 Member Posts: 99
    Cost/space issue

    Used to use a ratio of 50% of surface area in collectors. One of the best pool heaters I did was to put radiant tubing into the poolskirt slab. Kept the slab cool and the pool warm. Plastic collectors are used for pools because they are typically unglazed and least expensive and impervious to the pool water/chemicals
  • thfurnitureguy_4
    thfurnitureguy_4 Member Posts: 398


    I have a 15x30 pool in SE PA. I have 400' of 5/8 black plastic well pipe on a flat rubber roof. I use just a y off the pool cleaner pump. It warms the water 15deg above ambiant pool temp. we opened mid May and our temp is now 73deg with a bubble cover. pipe is about $10.00/ 100 feet at Lowes. hope this helps
  • Wayco Wayne
    Wayco Wayne Member Posts: 615
    Someone used

    to sell rubber mats that youu would lay on the roof of a nearby pool house. It had tubes through it and you just ran pipes up to the mats and circulated the pool water through. low cost and inexpensive. WW

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  • George Peteya_2
    George Peteya_2 Member Posts: 72
    It coulda been ...

    ... a well-performing pool heater/deck cooler. Around a 16x32 inground, I put 8 circuits of 3/4" pvc in stone dust on 6" centers. Enough stone dust to just cover the pipes, and 1-1/2" bluestone over all. The pipe array covers about 700 sf, and only puts out maybe 30,000 Btuh on a good day, like today. A tekmar 079 sensor under one of the bluestones reads 106°F. as I write this. A counter guy, let's call him Matt Wilson of John Coda & Son, told me I should mix some portland cement into the stone dust, for better heat transfer. Did I listen? Noooo... but thanks to an additional 120 sf flat-on-the-ground-mounted collector working along with the deck array, the pool is up to 82°. It just would have been nice to have an invisible collector doing the whole pool heating job, and a radiant deck cooler at the same time. As it is, the deck surface gets up to 150° (OUCH!) where there are no pipes, and 130° (ouch.) where there are (Raytek Raynger). Maybe next life, next house ...
  • Paul Pollets
    Paul Pollets Member Posts: 3,665
    Still do...

    Thermomax sells them. They're an economical way to do a swimming pool. Vacuum tubes are more costly, and of course, more efficient.

    Thermomax.com is a great website. Lots of info for beginners, DIY's and Contractors.

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