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window phlat phurnace...

Discussion in '* Scratch Built Section *' started by rjarois, Nov 11, 2009.

  1. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    OK fellas, Trish, i started to build a new project....its a solar heater....i posted for mark and Trish's workshop, but i decided to make one for my house...just from what i have done, i can say there's lots of energy from the sun i have never payed much attention to before...it is going to be a 7x10 can unit, 70 cans altogether....i have 4 rows of five so far siting on my window sill...and i can say its puttin out some serious heat, without not even complete....i can hardly believe it....i just started the project, and i will post some photos of the build as i move forward...i have the main parts cut and ready on the phlatprinter. i got the the idea from some fella from Newfoundland that heats his home with this set-up. randy.
     
  2. kram242

    kram242 Administrator Staff Member

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    Randy this is going to be a great project, I was talking with Gasmasher last night about it a little more.
    I am going to watch and learn because I want to add one to the PhlatShop as well.
    This is going to be great!
    Mark
     
  3. 66tbird

    66tbird Moderator Staff Member

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    Two words------ Fennel lens :D

    Great fire hazard btw

    So, is it a passive system or active?
     
  4. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    i was going to make a passive, but im not sure im going to build now...i was burned real bad as a kid, and dont need fire hazards in my life...spending my life getting burned, i dont need that no more...randy.
     
  5. FozzyTheBear

    FozzyTheBear Member

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    Just watched the video.... That is just amazing!! Nice work Randy.... But I'm a little puzzled by it. When it's dull and cold outside, does it still produce much heat?? The UK is not noted for a lot of sun..... Except in the summer when we don't want the heat. I'd build one, but I'd have to be convinced that it'd work over here.

    Another thought to mull round that absolute genius brain of yours..... In the summer when you don't want heat but actually want air conditioning instead, do you think it would be possible to attach the output of that to a heat exchanger.... and use the energy of the sun to actually cool the house down! I know I'm probably starting you on yet another quest, but hey! I know you love it.

    Best Regards,
    Julian (Fozzy the Bear)
     
  6. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    i have had just stumbled some of the videos on you-tube...none of this is from any thought of mine....as i know diddly squat about thermal heat radiation...and now that someone says its a fire hazard...well that stops me in my tracks. randy.
     
  7. 66tbird

    66tbird Moderator Staff Member

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  8. FozzyTheBear

    FozzyTheBear Member

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    Hey! don't worry about it, we understood what you meant. I was going to pick you up on that one earlier today but I thought It would have been a bit rude to do that.

    The only reason I know how to spell it is because they're used on wide angle soft focus lights in TV and Theatre... The pronunciation of Fresnel is "Frenell" in case anybody wants to know... So it probably has a French root to the word with that silent s. So I guess the spelling confusion is an easy one for anybody to make, given the way it sounds.

    Best Regards,
    Julian (Fozzy The Bear)
     
  9. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    please excuse me for not knowing what you fellas were talking about....i had no clue what you were talking about with that lens, 66bird...but as soon i seen the term "fire hazard", it snapped my mind to back long ago when i was six.....i see now you were funnin. unless someone seriously tells me that's its a safety issue, i shall resume the heater build, as it may help warm my home this long cold winter. again please excuse my ignorance. randy.
     
  10. gasmasher

    gasmasher New Member

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    Randy, I built a very simple version of this with a friend years ago and it worked great. There wasn't a hint of a fire hazard. The outlet temp was less than a hundred and you could touch the heat exchanger (soda cans) but not for long. We used a simple plywood box and ran the cans from side to side so they all formed one long tube zigzagging up the box. A little dryer hose and we were in business.

    I think the mention of the Fresnel lens was the 'fire hazard'. It is basically a magnifying glass that is flat (and can be flexible) with a lot of concentric rings that do the magnifying work. I had a lot of fun wood burning my name when I was a kid with a Fresnel sheet from a science book.
     
  11. 66tbird

    66tbird Moderator Staff Member

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    Glad to hear your going to resume the build Randy.
     
  12. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    got the solar heater done...going to put it up tomorrow...this is going to stay on the inside of the window, as so i can take down in the spring...i will report back with temps. randy.
    [​IMG]
     
  13. gasmasher

    gasmasher New Member

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    That looks great randy. I like how you made it to just fit in the window. Is that 1/2" foam?
     
  14. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    thanks tim....yes it is 1/2 foam. it fits in my south kitchen window....gets sun most of the day. randy.
     
  15. 3DMON

    3DMON Moderator Staff Member

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    That's cool or should i say hot!
    Looking forward to hear your results with it.
     
  16. kram242

    kram242 Administrator Staff Member

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    Randy you are right you do have big windows in your house! that looks great.
    I am looking forward to seeing the out come of your temper readings
    Really nice work Randy!
    Mark
     
  17. meistertek

    meistertek Member

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    Man Randy your solar phlatfurnace looks real professional! Can't wait to see it in the window and hear how it works for you.
     
  18. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    i put it up this morning...the sun barely peeked out today, lols. i could barely feel any heat with it...im lookin forward to a nice sunny day. randy.
     
  19. 66tbird

    66tbird Moderator Staff Member

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    Looks good as usual. Convection only may be a little weak on the output. A small low amp 120mm 12v muffin fan from a computer would be real quiet and move about the right amount of air.
     
  20. 3DMON

    3DMON Moderator Staff Member

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    Any updates on this Randy?
     
  21. rjarois

    rjarois Moderator Staff Member

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    it works....but i have no idea how much its actually helping...between 10 and 2 when the sun is out, its puttin out heat, but as of now im not sure how much its saving on the gas bill. i know its something, and whatever it is its free.... over the years i have owned my house, i kept the heat at 72deg. in the winter...this year i keep it at 62deg. it will be real hard to figure out any savings this year. next year i will know better. also i have hot water heat, and it stays constant to whatever i set it at, with no variance. it prolly would be better if i made a bigger heat collector....but if it saves a buck a day, its good....randy.
     
  22. 3DMON

    3DMON Moderator Staff Member

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    As long as it's putting out some sort of heat, that's good.
     
  23. Jnida63

    Jnida63 Member

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    What is sunshine? I haven't seen sun in months it seems
     
  24. power67

    power67 New Member

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    This is a great project. I have built a few of these before and found out many "Tricks" to scrub even More efficiency out of them.
    One of the best that comes to mind is that when we cut the bottom of the cans out we cut them out so we created somewhat of a 4 bladed prop shape. This causes the column of air rising in each can row to spiral up, rather than shoot up as it gets hotter. By spiraling up the column, the air scubs more heat from the sides of the can and thus more BTU can be transfered out of the system.

    great job
     

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