Off Grid Solar Shower And Compost Toilet Part 4 Solar Hot water panel

[@kayepowell6535]

What a clever mind you have Kris, your partnership with Dot is so great that you can gain whatever your hearts desire. I wish you all the best for your future. Well done “mates”, from an Aussie admirer.

[@davidforster3968]

Kris, I used it do in home remodeling for a number of years and I don’t know how times when soldering I had problems with leaks until a plumber explained that to eliminate leaks always apply solder on the opposite side of the joint of where you are heating. It works beautifully because if you haven’t heated the joint hot enough, the solder won’t melt.

[@wolfe1970]

Hey Kris, hope your well, looking back through your videos and came across this one, a couple of points with this, you could change the glass panel in the window to one thats called K glass, it reflects the heat rays back into the box, so they dont ever escape out, and the other thing was to fill the box with a black gravel, the really fine one, that will help to absorb more rays and keep the heat in the box for a longer period

[@harunyahyadotorg]

whats black gravel.

[@Bigtbuilder]

Gravel that’s black

[@andyaim4764]

Always appreciate your content, no click bait, no ads just great videos. Thanks. Last year I made a black water pipe heater for my spa as the cost was high. Have to say it worked great on bright sunny days, the hottest day of summer it raised the temp to 38c in the spa.

[@nick.caffrey]

I love your spirit. And the 'can do' attitude. Live long and prosper!

[@garyfairbrother5532]

Your roof mounting gymnastic routine earned a 9.78 out of 10 for me. Deduct was for not sticking the landing, Lol. Great video, your lifestyle makes me wish I was 50 years younger. Merry Christmas and thanks for all the video presents.

[@JohnSmith-ki2eq]

Made one of those about 35 years ago, we used an old radiator (domestic heating) painted black instead of copper pipe and insulated the box with rigid insulation. You can use a new car/truck radiator if you can find one cheap enough.

[@LiamRoberts00]

Pipework from an old fridge works great

[@tarstarkusz]

This thing isn't going to do jack squat. The box is more or less empty and the tubing is too big. The tubing needs to be MUCH smaller to increase the surface area and there needs to be a lot more of it.

[@harunyahyadotorg]

@@tarstarkusz jack squat.

[@ladypilliwick8179]

What I did was used barn corrugated roof barn iron from a scrap yard. Made the 8'×4' out of 2x4s. Loaded it with pvc black pipe ( or black garden hose ) Screwed plexiglass for cover Filled a water tank with water on the ground. Hooked up an air compress to it. Then hooked it to the hot water set up. Then to shower. All this was at ground level. It even works in winter

[@tarstarkusz]

This setup isn't going to do anything. It's only 1/2 a square meter to start with. 2nd, the tubes are just too big (not enough surface area in comparison to the water) and there isn't enough of it. At least 80% of the surface area is not covered in copper piping. Even granting 20% efficiency for the entire 1/2 a square meter, which is probably a pretty major stretch, that's 100 watts continuous output. It takes 4.18 watts to raise a gram of water by 1 degree C. The water is never going to thermally migrate either. There just isn't enough heat. Also, the panel is going to need very frequent cleaning because at night, the glass will fog up just like car windows.

[@jraschke]

Nicely done Kris! A couple things about the thermometer you were using... its IR, not laser (the laser just helps you know where it's pointing). The area it's measuring spreads out like a cone as you get further away, so to get a proper reading you want to get nice and close to whatever it is you're measuring. Also the IR doesn't do well measuring from reflective surfaces (glass). Cheers.

[@jeroen81]

Exactly. It is basically a 1 pixel IR camera. The spot size ratio should be mentioned somewhere on the camera, the case or the manual. For accurate readings you need to make sure the spot is completely on the object you want to measure. If the spot is bigger than the object, the accuracy of your reading is gone. You also have to take into account the effect of the fixed emissivity setting.

[@Marco2710x]

The Idea is to put a black foil 1mm behind the Glass to create some heat, further use a thinner pipe with more bendings. and if you put some reflectiv stuff below the Copperpipe it will increase the heat even more. Next thing is, you should insulate the Box to collect more Heat inside the Box to heat the Water.

[@kennethgibbons2487]

Kris - I loved it when you made the minor mistake by forgetting to take out the heat shield - that's the sort of thing I always do - just proves that despite your smarts and skills even you do occasionally make these sorts of mistakes. Great job though.

[@lmhall6635]

This was a blast to watch! Enjoyed every minute! 👍👍

[@RayBrennan]

Lots of ideas on here; First, I would invest in a pipe benders and save on fittings. Next I would have used a roll of flat copper bound and soldered to the pipe to cover almost the whole box with surface area. Finally chemically treat it so that the copper itself turns black.

[@MrDalsbaek]

Instead of adding another box you can increase efficiency by adding a sheet of cobber touching the pipe. The heat capacity and transference is much better than the still air in the box and radiant heat from the wood.

[@KrisHarbour]

yeah that would for sure help with extra heat, copper sheet is big money though!

[@omelay]

Or add a shiny backing slipped behind to tubes to reflect the radiant heat in the voids toward pipes.

[@MrDalsbaek]

@@KrisHarbour Copper sheet is the best option. However, I remember people using aluminum soda cans wrapped around the copper pipes when these heaters where built for 'allotment huts' here in Denmark. As pictures explain this stuff better than words I did a quick google search. www.lav-det-selv.dk/projekter/id/1549 sites.google.com/site/solvarmeeksperten/Home/solkomfur/solvogn/solfanger-af-tomme-daaser

[@gregormiller4037]

@@MrDalsbaek ...that will take me less than a week for that many cans of Heineken:)

[@eamsden1982]

Anders D “maximus ironthumper” did a solar thermal a bit like this Kris, there are a few vids on KZbin covering his success, might be worth you having a look 👍

[@urbanfpv3852]

Nice work Kris. Have just started our journey to go as off grid and self sufficient (as we can be) up in Scotland. Can't wait to start on all the projects!

[@STeALtHsVidz]

Unless I've missed it and you've altered the design Kris, I think I would have used a flat sheet of steel or copper, painted matt black, behind those pipes to gather and transfer more heat to the water, wood not being great at heat transfer. I also would have used single glazing maybe, I'm thinking that the double glazed unit doesn't let as much heat through as it's designed to insulate against heat and cold in houses. Just a thought or two. Great work though, love watching your videos.

[@marciam6224]

I soooo enjoy your videos! And Hello to Dot!! Great camera work!!

[@punkbloater]

That roof looks a bit wobbly with all that stuff on top of it... 😂 only joking mate. Perfect job! 👍🏻

[@jamesrose1974]

Wobble, wobble... Goes the camera!

[@pjoutdoorservices775]

Damm you beat me to it. Just seen this after I posted my comment 😂

[@briankshaw8755]

Awesome skills on the project. Keep up the great energy!

[@JustGem87]

There is a part of me that really wanted it to fall out of the digger bucket. glad it didn't though. Great job. cant wait to see more :)

[@MyPlayHouse]

Harvesting solar power :-) always nice,, when watching it's so easy to point out all the possible improvements,, but well it does look okay.

[@jamest.5001]

I'm thinking about building one of these. Using aluminum tubing. 3/8" or 1/2" and nearly fill it with a layer of tubing. And plumb it to allow multiple passed. Or a single pass through the coils. Single pass would be in to a manifold. Paralling the coils. Witch would give higher flow/less time to heat. And the series will do the opposite. I'm convinced it will work. I will use it to atleast preheat the water for a gas tankless heater. I plan to do a similar project to heat water with a wood stove. I will be burning yard scraps and trash. I'm not cutting decent trees for firewood. I may grow bamboo and schrubs to be fire wood and to build things. Bamboo is an amazing wood/ grass, fast growing. I will compost the ash and sawdust. Great video! Keep us posted...

[@russelllewis1190]

Hey kris. When your soldering fittings, do both joints at the same time. The 2nd 45 you did, you soldered one side separately. When you heat the joint up to do the other side, you risk melting the solder and weakening the seal. So you can do multiple fittings, but never do half a fitting. All the best.

[@D4NS80]

Mate. That hammerfor is a fantastic piece of medievil equipment you have there. Fine work.

[@CJ-sm7tp]

I enjoy the simplest of everything for an example using the piece of wood as a hammer is brilliant use what you got around you too many people out there once the correct tools for the job use what you've got and be happy with it brilliant

[@aaronbeck6862]

If you want to shower year round put a thermoelectric generator and a pump on your woodstove and boiler and slope your piping from the round house to the shower out side and be sure to insulate the piping to avoided any freezing. Just a thought, cheers 🍻

[@MELODYMUNRO]

That would work superbly where I am. It was 42C here the other day - cheers and well done from Queensland, Australia. The other option for heating the water could maybe be a dragon stove made from cob? ... you could heat the floor too.

[@stephenoakley5396]

A little tip is to bend the solder in a zigzag to control how much you put in each joint 15mm length for 15mm and 22mm for 22mm and so on

[@larrymcdowell6920]

Don't know what size you might be getting ahold of but over here we run 4inch exhaust pipe for our water heater wrap it in copper tubing and then cover it with 8inch cap the ends . You can use it for hot air but also for heating water fill the empty space with sand paint black and set in the sun. I'm sure you'll get the jist of it .

[@edemup44]

Love watching your builds! 👍

[@09conrado]

I've seen coiled tubings used for this, tightly wound and entering in the middle, exiting at one end. I guess you'd end up with lots more surface area to catch heat.

[@mcdowell356]

Be careful soldering with that Canadian dinner jacket on ...they catch fire quite easily 👍

[@wanderstrings]

pretty entertaining watching you get the solar heater mounted on the roof

[@atowning]

These solar panels are great, I've made a few caus my wussey kids don't like cold water in their paddling pool, But a backing plate of some kind to collect more heat is a real help, copper best, Alu works well, even steel if you have nothing else. having said that perhaps yours will give the ideal water temp for the shower, they can get very hot, enjoying your jorney :)

[@mpjohnson2]

A large sheet of copper in the back with the pipe soldered to it, then paint it all black. The sheet does the collecting, not the pipe. The pipe moves the heat to the tank, and the tank stores it. Insulate all the parts and it will be much more efficient.

[@adamgruber2342]

matt johnson a large sheet of copper? U come across those pretty cheap?

[@martynbuzzing3327]

Nice job. If you use a single piece of copper pipe and bend it instead of soldering it. Would it work better? Be more efficient?

[@pjoutdoorservices775]

Be careful up there mate I remember how much your building was wobbling in your previous video! 😂😂 Looking forward to seeing how efficient the solar heater will be! Guess we gotta wait till the summer to see though 🙁. Keep up the great content buddy. 👍👍

[@almondfarm9046]

You nailed it ,thanks , we are going to try it in Africa

[@the-nomad]

Nice bit of work.! I'm thinking about making myself a water heater, I live off grid, on the road in a bull powered waggon so need to think about position and size, and, need to decide on my final waggon format :)

[@thegit8698]

Nice job Kris, what do you think about using microbore to make one of those solar heaters? The pros are flexibility so no need for soldering, smaller diameter so maybe slower flow rate giving the water more contact time to heat up? You could get more runs into a similar area that you built, so I'd love to hear your cons if you have any, also are you enjoying the Welsh weather?

[@mattwoodproperty]

Iv no idea how much water this could heat, but if I was a betting man, I’d say it might, at best, just take the chill off the water. If your having volunteers, you will need an abundance of water at different times of day. What about some kind of IBC container, is it realistic to get your hands on composting material, run the pipe through it, and that be more efficient? Food for thought kris

[@gazza2963]

am pretty sure when most people are there helping, it will be summer and all will want a cold shower to cool down after working all day

[@KrisHarbour]

www.chlorideexide.com/shop/solar/solar-water-heater/

[@mattwoodproperty]

Gaz Underhill .... he mentioned there’s a group in Spring, but point taken

[@ruaraidhmcdonald-walker9524]

Those three copper pipes coming out of the box should be plastic as they'll wick away the heat. A metal plate soldered to all the pipe and insulated from the wood will greatly increase the heat gathering area. Might be easier to just find an old thermal solar panel that's being recycled...

[@jmillsey]

I think having a mirror or like tinfoil on the backing under the pipes would reflect the heat back again the glass keeping it much warmer.

[@res1492]

Have you thought about spraying the inside of the box and pipe black...will be much more efficient. Edit:-.....oh...i really should watch all the video before commenting

[@ltaylor4444]

Putting aluminum reflective sheets behind the pipes would be much better than simply a painted black board.

[@edwingolddelirium]

With a microwave transformer taking out the secondair coil and replace it by a brakefluid copper pipe 6 mm or 8 mm and send it a few times through the transformer and will be a inductor with a good insulation around the winding the input has to be alternating voltage to create heat. connect the copper pipe to a closed circuit with a natural water circuit of cold as return and hot as supply.when everything is connected you can test with which voltage is needed to generate heat.

[@____________________________.x]

I saw one of these at that Alternative Energy Centre in Wales (you've probably been there), it worked much better than I'd expected

[@lamarr1986]

Could use some polished stainless steel "wings" (reflectors) to help reflect more solar energy into the collection area. It's good you painted the back, black, as this will help convert visible light into infrared. Typically you would want the copper inside to cover a bigger surface area.

[@DatsWhatHeSaid]

1. Spray paint outside, not indoors 2. Never spray paint without respiratory protection.. Take care

[@pauleaton6908]

No safety tie either!

[@TacoMaster3211]

Hey Kris, nice work. I was wondering if there was reason you chose to use painted copper, rather than black hose/tubing? People here use it for heating pools in the summer, and it works very well. You could increase the surface area by using the tubing vs the copper pipes to increase the efficiency. Plus I'm sure hose is cheaper than copper.

[@bearsharkp3901]

He likes materials that don't break down under UV

[@TacoMaster3211]

@@bearsharkp3901 I'm sure he would be able to find black garden hose. That's what people use here, and it's perfectly fine. Heck, the garden hose I have is over 25 years old and it perfectly usable. He wouldn't need to worry about the flexibility decreasing, since it would be in a box, not moving.

[@horstszibulski19]

Build a heat exchanger in the tank and fill the heating circuit with antifreeze/water mix like in your car`s radiator, then you won't have to dry out the system in winter! Maybe a little solar powered pump in the circuit? Great job! :-D

[@ilenastarbreeze4978]

Would it have worked better if you put say a sheet of aluminum foil behind the copper and on the edges that way it reflects the light back up or would that have gotten too hot?

[@FieldtoFarm_UK]

Clocked the bales of bags in the background! Looks like our shed floor

[@kristophersmallsr.9395]

Well water and copper pipes will eventually spring pin hole leaks from my experience . But it does take decades . Enjoy your hot shower .

[@rodeovin]

Since I didn't found the answer in the specific video; where did you bought the hydro electric nozzle valve thing, and how it's called?

[@backyardsounds]

I wonder if lining the inside with soapstone behind the piping would benefit? I've never seen it done before but it's really good at retaining heat. Some put it on their woodstove tops.

[@vansolo9794]

Might be a good idea to think about wind deflection around that lot on the roof Kris. You know what them gales be like in your neck of the woods!

[@fraserweir538]

Hi Kris, Thanks for the video. Can you remember where you got the 12v pump and panel?

[@markd1300]

A job well done as usual.

[@Mythtrekker610]

Nice work but I just thought would a thermal survival blanket (you can buy one for £1) painted black make the heat absorption and reflection more efficient?

[@Nellyontheland]

Cool. Might I recommend a couple of 'weep holes' in the very bottom of the box? In case of water ingress over the course of a storm or stretch of miserable weather. X

[@KrisHarbour]

Thats a good idea. thanks for the comment

[@vongroven115]

Why not use Pex Flex pipe? It is certainly bendable, will take paint and doesn't cost a fortune like copper and fittings.

[@75keg75]

At 13:05 - could you use that Japanese Yakisugi - burnt wood - method in lieu of paint on the wood? Possibly a bit more eco friendly than spray paint? For others I believe you can get “recycled” paint put in cans. I think they are more brown colors rather than black though.

[@larrymcdowell6920]

While I am watching you sweat those joints, was wondering about your pelter problem that you might think about brasing it with aluminum rod

[@koningbolo4700]

maybe a good idea to experiment with using a cheap single layered central heater radiator, turning the rear of it into the sun (the rear being the corrugated sheet metal welded onto the radiator) You may need to fill the system with anti freeze and run a copper coil in the tank to heat the water contained in it...Obviously the radiator is steel and it will rust slowly away if exposed to water alone...

[@RonKris]

That glass looks double paned. If you want to generate more heat, use a single pane. That is why you were getting lower heat readings with the glass on.

[@SimonEarly]

not enough surface area. Have you tried an old truck radiator or a few fridge radiators?

[@AnnetteZang]

Do u think copper pipes will heat the water quicker than black pvc piping? Nice job on the solar water heating cabinet. Hugs

[@quackerzdb]

Just a thought: the tight fit of the inlet and outlet in the wood frame may be an issue with the expansion of the copper pipe. It could break the solder joints.

[@KrisHarbour]

copper pipe is always used where it terminates in a dead end like a massive tank full of water. so it could only expand pushing on its last joints. how is this any different?

[@bigunone]

If that is low E glass your solar gain will be less, but I am guessing you already know this. Good job!

[@magnuscolable]

Hey Chris really nice job! Just wondering why used copper piping could you have used black pvc pipe?

[@KrisHarbour]

I might make a second one facing for morning sun like that yet.

[@Mark.Ritchie]

I'd have padded in the back and sides with insulation or sheepwool to retain some heat. Not having any experience at this kind of thing it was the first thing that came to mind.

[@ryanwilliams9667]

Would putting a mirror behind the copper pipes help reflect additional heat/light back into the tubing, or is that negligible?

[@thr0ne1997]

Since I hear you talking about skipping; are you at all familiar with the squatting community? For a few months, I've stayed at a squat with the same philosophy of self-sustainability and such. Your way of living REALLY reminds me of that. It was a very fun and enlightening experience ^^ The squat was called 't Landhuis, in Ghent, Belgium, maybe you've heard of it.

[@sarahdeason493]

Great Job ❣

[@matthewgordon-clark2392]

well done Kris. How are the trees coming along please? Matthew

[@sarapulford5957]

The weather sounds horrendous on your workshop roof. Hailstones ?

[@YodaWhat]

@Kris Harbour Natural Building - I've watched a number of your videos. Very impressive! I generally applaud all your efforts. In the case of solar water heating, I would have liked to see you using sheets of copper *selective surface* solar absorber material, and thermally-insulated box. Selective Surfaces are coatings/materials that depart very significantly from a mere *blackbody* surface. That is to say, they absorb and emit quite differently than normal surfaces and materials. The usual goal is being good at absorbing solar energy as visible light, converting it to heat, but then being very poor at re-radiating the infrared thermal energy. Some can gain heat at a rate equal to *ten suns* shining on a mere blackbody, but with just one sun's illumination. They are used for solar water heating in many parts of the world. Many use a more advanced kind, vacuum-insulated glass tubes with double walls and a selective surface on the inner cylinder. With illumination of just one sun and no extra insulation, they can actually boil water on a good day. If extra light is concentrated onto such tubes, they can give you heat at significantly higher temperatures. In one DIY example, using a mirrored acrylic sheet bent into a parabola, the *extra light enabled the tubes to give out their collected energy at over 300 degrees C (over 570°F).* At that temperature, storing useful amounts of heat for days at a time can be accomplished with just some pipes covered in sand, inside an insulated box. But at high temperatures, you obviously have to be extremely careful using water, since it can make steam at rather high pressure, which can be quite dangerous, even explosive. Air or carbon dioxide or certain oils can be used instead, or even steam IF care is taken to prevent the pressure ever getting high in the solar collector and the heat storage unit. 300 C is also hot enough for a homebrew heat engine to convert heat to work at over 25% efficiency. You could power your shop that way, and still heat your home with the heat engine's waste heat.

[@Lauriemine]

If, for whatever reason the water isn't hot enough, I'd suggest using an old radiator painted black, in the peak of summer the water would be close to boiling.

[@res1492]

How is it supposed to thermal syphon is a radiator?...you need pipes for the water to heat up in and move through.

[@reggiep75]

Had you not considered using black painted coke cans to fill in the gaps between the pipes to pull and retain more heat in?

[@jamesculp3622]

What kinda heat do you think will this provide? Say your water comes in at ?40 degrees, do you think this will heat the water to ? 80 degrees?

[@JamesTombs]

Wouldn't some foil behind the pipes be better to reflect extra sun light on to the back of the pipes?

[@dylansmith7705]

As a professionally trained history teacher with absolutely no gift for science, I was wondering if a sheet of reflective backing under the pipes would get them even warmer?

[@gonzalezliu86]

I think i saw the building wobble a bit as the tractor got near it hahahahah JK. cool design on the water heater.

[@genecatcher1]

You must increase the surface, so the panel to be effective.

[@gowithbazza]

Would it help to heat it to have something to reflect from behind the pipes if u get me drift

[@vinnyvanca1748]

Is that much copper going to be enough to heat the water?

[@johnw6389]

I'm no plumber but I would have thought it was better to use 8mm coil then 15mm pipe.... the longer the coil is in the sun is more efficient.

[@smiddyskrt8111]

beautiful work mate, keep it up. Can't wait to start working on my own land and projects. Love the videos! Just a question, where did get all your knowledge from? Regards

[@danielboomsma]

Big fan of your work and your channel. One point i noticed is the drain being a dead end in your tubing. Would this be a place for legionella to grow? Relativly stagnant water being pretty warm for a long time. Just my two cents, keep up the great work though!

[@kimrichardson8376]

Where did you learn all these skills? You seem to be able to do pretty much anything😊🇨🇦

[@charlesarnold4963]

A very nice idea and very good soldering. However I think that 500 W is highly optimistic. When I worked in industry we used a value of 300 W per square metre for solar heating , worst case, ie in the hottest parts of the world.

[@KrisHarbour]

That sounds very low to me. the sun puts out about a kw per square meter so that would be very inefficient that is photovoltaic panels kind of numbers not direct heating numbers.

[@charlesarnold4963]

Kris Harbour you are correct. The value I quoted was wrong. It should be 1130W per square metre.

[@rootsoftheland9040]

I made one of these & posted a video on my channel. Good work, Kris!

[@KrisHarbour]

I will check it out

[@jtigga15]

Looking great

[@silvertopaz72]

This is awesome, my I ask why you didn't double the amount of cross pipes in the same box for double the amount of water and heat exchange, just asking. It would save from make the second box. Take care my young friend.

[@KrisHarbour]

Just cost, it gets expesive. cheaper to make more panels with more surface area rather than more copper in the same panel

[@VitorMadeira]

Could this be made using black HDPE (irrigation) pipe instead of copper?

[@charlesguero2003]

Kris, I was thinking, if the water doesn't get hot enough, (I'm not saying it wont). Maybe make a door on top of the box that has the rain trap in it. But make the door out of glass, that way the sun will heat the water up that is in the trap before it runs down thru the copper pipe? Plus I'm thinking the screen on the old big screen t.v.'s work like a magnifying glass, which would help heat the water in the tank. But you would have to open the door to catch the rain, then close the door to help heat it. (Just in case the copper doesn't get the water hot enough). Love the videos.. been watching you for over a year.

[@Kistilan]

Technically could do another "glass enclosure" around it to create a thermal bubble. I'm considering that for Winter application year-round since I've seen this work a few times on KZbin and it didn't look like anyone was cheating and making it "appear" to work. Another thing would be that it's quite possible to super-heat it by adding mirrors to the sides and even from another location nearby (towers) to force more solar heat, creating that magnifying glass effect and in below-freezing temps would bring in additional heat. The challenge would be to absorb without catching on fire (thinking a stone casement enclosed with the pipes, no wood) and of course getting those beams directed on target off the reflective materials for a majority of the day without also super-heating a wooden structure in the Summer into a blazing glory.

[@leeroys3682]

Nice work great vid

[@henkdetank2881]

Great job! Just wondering if privacy/limousine glass will add to a better heating?

[@rosebarnes9625]

No, it would block some of the light/heat...

[@AChocolateMiniroll]

you could use a big lense to direct the sunlight in?