#BUILT A SUN SPOTTER HOW TO#

Second, you must have a heat trap, something that can trap and hold the heat. Be aware that this container will get very very hot. Metal mugs are sold at camping stores and Wal-mart. To make a solar oven, three things are needed:įirst, you need a heat-safe pot or container to hold the food. A dark colored metal or glass container works best and a handle makes it easy to hold and use.

Emergency Preparedness/Alternate fuel sources : cooking without fire/cooking without electricity.

Life skills & self sufficiency: cooking.

Environment & Conservation : recycling living green energy & fuel conservation.

Science : solar energy projects solar power, effects of heat.

Whether at home, school, or scouts, homemade solar oven projects for kids are fun activities that can be incorporated into many different lesson plans, including: There’s nothing better than going for a swim in a nice, heated swimming pool on a breezy day, but electric pool heaters use quite a bit of electricity.Building a solar oven is a great school science project for kids. A solar pool heater uses the free, renewable, alternative energy of sunlight to sustainably warm up your swimming pool. While solar pool heaters are relatively cheap, building your own is even cheaper, and more fun. If you’re the type who likes to build, you can design your very own.

#BUILT A SUN SPOTTER HOW TO#

Keep reading to learn how to build your own DIY solar pool heater! Why Build Your Own Solar Pool Heater? The materials are cheap and readily available, and it can be done in a day if you have some help. The better question is, why not? Solar water heaters tend to be inexpensive, even more so if you build your own. You can find the materials at a local hardware store for less than half the price of a high-quality solar pool heater. Two to three people can build one in a matter of hours. Even if you make some blunders, which you will, you’ll have yours set up and running within a day. While it can be done alone, it’s recommended to have at least one other person there to lend a hand.

While it’s nice to order a premade solar pool heater from the internet, building your own gives you the freedom to create your own design. There’s also no warranties to worry about, so you can modify it as much as you want. If it breaks or malfunctions, you don’t have to put the blame on the manufacturer, since you made it yourself. You know how it was built, so you know exactly how to fix it. Paired with a solar pool cover, your own DIY pool heater will keep your pool warm enough for enjoyable swimming year-round. Making Your DIY Solar Pool Heaterīuilding a DIY solar heater is more simple than it seems. The materials are easily found at a hardware store. You’re going to need wood to build a frame, an irrigation hose, a transparent hard plastic cover, and a pool pump. You should also keep a thermometer handy to check the temperature of the water. This is going to be what houses the irrigation hose which collects the heat from the sun, similarly to how solar water heaters heat water for your home. You can build the frame in any shape you like, but to keep it simple, it’s best to use a square or rectangular shape. Remember to build the frame according to the size of your pool. More water needs more volume and vice versa. Use a large piece of plywood for the backing of the frame, then cut down some two-by-fours to enclose the borders of the backing. You can also use a two-by-four to bisect the backing and create two large areas to collect heat, like this guy did.

This center beam will also double as a support beam. It’s very important to paint the frame black to help absorb heat from the sun, replicating the typically-black design of solar panels.

You can paint the wood pieces separately before you build the frame, or you can paint the frame as a whole once it’s put together. The hose is where the pool water will collect the sun’s energy. A black irrigation hose is your best bet. Like the frame, it’s important that your hose is black to maximize the amount of heat collected by the sun. The length of the hose depends on how big your solar pool heater will be, and how far it will be from your pool and the pool pump. Installing the hose may be one of the more difficult steps of making your DIY solar pool heater. The hose has to be coiled inside the frame in a spiral pattern. It’s best to start from the outside and work your way in.

Built a sun spotter