With the changing weather I thought i'd show off my pop can heater, been getting free heat for 3 winters now 289 cans and a bathroom fan :)
http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/...ps466254b4.jpg
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With the changing weather I thought i'd show off my pop can heater, been getting free heat for 3 winters now 289 cans and a bathroom fan :)
http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/...ps466254b4.jpg
I would like to know more about how it works.
Cut the top off the cans with a can opener, drill three 1/2" holes in the bottom of each can with a step drill, using high temp caulk glue them together 17 per stack for 17 stacks (mine is on a 4x8 sheet of insulated plywood.. the bigger it is the more heat it gives off) drill holes smaller than the cans in 2 boards to create manifolds for the top and bottom areas, cover with acrylic sheet after mounting a snap thermostat in the top manifold (mine turns on at 125 degrees and off at 90 degrees) and wire it to run the fan (mine is on the inlet side (bottom manifold) in the back of my sons bedroom closet. The outlet side is in my bedroom (just a white dryer vent with the flap (keeps it from reverse cycling at night when it is cold) my thermometer in the top manifold only goes to 165 degrees and it gets hotter than that every day (it just reads "HI" after 165) if the sun is shining it will run constantly from 9 am to 5 pm. In the winter my bedroom is usually around 80 degrees (I use a fan to blow it down the hall as I live in a ranch house) and the furnace in my house does NOT run till evening. (there are youtube vids on this all over) some build a small one then say it didn't work..um duh.. :) If you have questions feel free to ask, I am VERY happy with mine, cut my LP bill by 1/3.. :)
That's really cool, Iron
That really is a great idea.... My first thought to improve it would be buy a solar panel, 12v battery, and 12v fan. Then you would not have to pay for the fan to run.
My first thought was 289 cans are going to pay my electric bill next month. But maybe I will try it, got two unused south facing bedrooms.
Thanks for sharing.
I remember seeing something of this sort a few years back, ...just can't seem to locate the links for it, ...was someone in Newfoundland was making some of these to sell.
Think he was using something like 240 cans or maybe more, ...thought it was a cool concept. Never did get around to trying it out, Nice to see someone make their own and give it a whirl. The concept looks like a nice way to supplement heat during the daytime, everybit helps nowadays. And Phantasm's idea for the solar powered fan would probably make a fine addition too.
Tons of energy saving info here of all sorts. A lot of do-it-yourself stuff here.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/renew...#axzz2i2TrCpEe
I was going to use the solar fan route too but I wanted +100 cfm and couldn't find a solar one so I went with the bathroom fan. :)
You just have to look..............Quote:
Originally Posted by Ironhunter
Bilge Blower Flange Mount 100 CFM 12 Volt D336481 | eBay
New 3" 12V in Line Blower Replace Shurflo Yellowtail 130CFM 12 Volts V Inline | eBay
Took all of 15 seconds to find.....
A few other seconds looking....Quote:
Originally Posted by Phantoms001
3" Marine Electric in Line Bilge Blower for Boat RVs 12V 120 CFM White 3 Inch | eBay
4" Marine Electric in Line Bilge Blower for Boat RVs 12V 235 CFM White Four Inch | eBay
Marine Boat 12V Electric in Line Bilge Air Blower 130CFM 3" | eBay
It looks like you can easily find a blower for under 25.00.....
Well, apparently they aren't too hard to find, feel free to put one on yours. :)
Thanks for the motivation, I am planning on experimenting with passive solar on some of my out building but I am currently obsessed with some bio fuel projects. This post may have given me the motivation to get it in gear. Heated buildings are nice here in South Dakota.
That would be good to have in a work shop that doesn't have heat.
That is where you see a lot of these since some are only out in it in the daytime anyway :) Thanks for all the replys.
almost free garage heat – just drink a lot of soda | Hemmings Daily
Good description and pictures as well. Also after the tutorial he also built an updated version. Good stuff thank you Ironhunter.
are they soda cans, or tin cans?
Just says soda.... Can use beer cans too so Sirs wont be left out.
Interesting. Following various links I came to this one, which might be worth a build for me
Solar Heater
you could put a solar panel on the roof and then run a 12 volt fan off of it and a 12 volt pump to circulate the coolant?
There is plans for a solar heater similar to the "can heater" shown, that uses convection action for the heat and does not use a fan.
I used the 12 fl oz aluminum variety.. (What occupied the volume before terminal use is up to the builder.. :) )
I just can't see how you'll cut the tops off of aluminum drink cans and have anything left that's usable ; )
You could run a pump or fan in a variety of ways. You have to do the math. You would need a battery of some size to regulate the voltage.Quote:
Originally Posted by jghilino
For example, one of the fans I put a link to was 2.5 amps. You can very inexpensively get a solar panel that puts out 2.5 amps, but as soon as a cloud passes by you will no longer be getting 2.5 amps, which obviously affects the fan (not enough juice to run). This would happen all day and most likely burn out the fan (or pump). A simple, cheap, 5ah battery solves this problem.
I personally would want a bigger battery, it would seem that a 10ah battery would be a better choice as it will run the fan for 4 hours unassisted by the solar panel.
What would end up happening is that you will use a little of the juice from the battery from time to time, but it would quickly charge in the morning when the heater hasn't reached a high enough temp to cut the fan on but there is sunlight.
Basically all you want is a thin membrane to absorb the solar rays and conduct the heat on its natural rise upward... :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Bear
Do-It-Yourself Solar Heat Collectors
Here is about 10-11 variations of the heat grabber, all a little different.
A few without fans.
Been stock piling parts to build a waste oil heater that will have a copper coil around it to heat water that will end up running thru a box with a a/c coil and a fan or a car radiator that still has the 12v fans attached.
Gave the heater a booster today, had an old mirror I placed at an angle in front of it to reflect more light on the heater, seems to improve the output.
You guys are all awesome. Just wanted to throw that in. Been offline for a while and this was the first post I saw.
Do you plan on setting up the burner unit (firebox) outside? This is the setup employed up here in rural areas. In my area, it's difficult or almost impossible to get house insurance having an indoor furnace burning waste oil, wood or whatever.Quote:
Originally Posted by KzScrapper
Second question - how are you going to filter the oil or are you just going to let it settle?
I would be very interested to hear your results on this project.
I would be burning outside in an area where I do breakdowns that is next to my office then running a line inside the office with the hot water.
When I dump the oil to store in 5 gal buckets I strain it thru 1/8" screen to get the big stuff and I'm hoping between that and other sediment settling to the bottom it's good to go but won't know till I try.
This has me thinking. How about taking some corrugated tin and stacking one on top of the other with the ridges creating the air channels? I think I'm going to start tinkering and see what comes of it.
For the DIY people (do-it-yourself) here is a link with all kinds of info and tips, just about anything you can think of, they have done it.
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Inside some computer power supplys theres a little board added that starts the fan up, depending on the tempature.
The fan is connected directly to the matchbox sized board.
That counld be used so the fan only works when the air in the heater is hot enough, rather than forcing air thru it all the time.
I use a snap thermostat on mine, turns the fan on at 120 and off at 90 degrees.
Oh, I forgot, I think the board makes the fan change speed so it stays at a constant tempature.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ironhunter