Solar Hot Water Heater

Daffodils At The Sea

Power Conserver
Joined
Jun 11, 2013
Messages
130
Reaction score
4
Points
31
After studying several different ways to do this, we've decided to use an old hot water heater inner tank, put it in an insulated box sprayed black with a glass cover. Lots of these on YouTube, and it seems the least maintenance-oriented way to do it, and the most effective in mild winters.

I tried to get a broken hot water heater, but the organizations that pick them up won't sell or give them away fearing they might be liable for anything that happens. A couple of the "recyclers" told me they just take them to the dump. The dump says they have no resale license, so they won't let you have them, at least not in California.

But I did find an old one for a reasonable price. Turns out it's a gas heater, which I never knew has an open center where a piece of metal heats up from the gas flame below and heats the water from the inside out. As we slowly take this thing apart, I'm learning a lot!

Also got some rigid insulation at a salvage yard for a decent price, and we're putting together a plywood box.

Anyone else doing this in any manner?
 
Top