Archive for July 13th, 2010
Some Solar Air Heater Ideas – Part 1 – See Part 2 And Playlist Of Many Related Videos
Here are some ideas on making a solar air heater out of aluminum soda cans. In particular I make the hole with an awl and a reaming tool such as needle nose pliers (I guess a hard wooden reamer is also possible). The reamed hold should be about the size of the opening on the other side, perhaps the size of a quarter; about 1″ to 1+1/4″ in diameter. The thing is, you want a good/large radiator surface, yet you dont want to impede the flow of the warm/hot air. If you want, since the real lid opening is offset from the center of the can, you may want to take a pair of snips and cut about 1/4 or more inch into the center and bend the metal downwards into the can. Then I show how the cans can be glued with silicone and lined up straight to dry along a straight wall or board(s). An extra bead of silicone around the outide of the joined area would also be good. To paint the cans, be sure they are clean inside and out of any dirt and especially oil since nothing will stick to it including paint. Also, remove the “tabs”. A thin coat of flat (not gloss) black paint on the side exposed (or all sides) to the sun will absorb the heat from the sunlight and transfer it to the warm/hot air column. The extra “meat” of aluminum (or other metal such as copper or silver) around the hole area acts as a radiator where the flowing air can come in contact with the metal and absorb some extra heat. If the hole is too big this may not be the case, hence this is one advantage of using cans and this …