@@Teknopottu that is true, but if the air has to travel through a restriction more so on one side of the fan than the other, for example an open room on one side and a duct (or baffles) on the other, then it's better for the fan to pull air from the restricted side and push it in to the open side. In terms of air moved per energy utalized by the fan. The air blowing from a fan is very turbulent, and creates a lot of drag going into a restriction, but blowing into an open space the drag is minimal. The air on the suction side hasn't been made turbulent by the fan and being under suction is at lower pressure, both factors lead to less drag, which is a more important factor on the more restricted side of the system.
@@raywharton9425 Thank you for your comment. There is a lot for me to learn from aerodynamics. Seems I misunderstood the original comment. I thought it meant that why not install a fan ALSO in the air intake. Misreading can be a thing because English is not my primary language. So, a fan works best by pulling from smaller/restricted place and blowing on bigger/less obscured, right? Does it mean that the fan would work in most effective way if installed on the vent inside the room that it's blowing the hot air in? Building a heater soon and been wondering about this.
Great video! The little fan would work great in the return pipe from your room being heated. Cooler air is denser and the fan will move it more efficiently.
I like this idea. Dude so glad you used the drill to screw towards the end. It was killing me to see you screw the first ones by hand. Man I can be lazy sometimes
Fan would be easier to service if it was built onto the outside. Hot air expands. Would the performance be boosted if the cleats were farther apart at the top (or closer together at the bottom)?
What was the temperature outside before you measured the temp. inside the duct? That's important for me, because I really liked the way you made this and am thinking on doing the same, but I'm curious about how much hot air it would draw out on a winter day. Overall, very nice video.
Did you ever add the flashing to see how much of an increase you could get? Also what is the furthest you have pulled air from you solar furnace builds while maintaining heat? I have a shop with full exposure to the sun on the south side until almost dusk and I was looking to build a few large solar furnaces to keep it from requiring to much gas to heat. I had planned to run some 4" insulated flexible ducting from the units to come out of the ceiling or wall. The flexible ducting will be used to cover the open storage I have between the wall and workshop so I would be pulling air from about 10-15 feet from the unit. Thanks for all the great videos.
If the idea is to route the air through the box and slow it to maximize heat pick up/ transport then wouldn't it be best to put as many channels inside as physically possible?
Quick question....when putting the back on would it help to caulk before screwing it on? Second, if you built this unit deeper and had more air capacity do you see hotter temperatures when you compare this unit vs the one you made with the downspouts?
Great job! Would insulating box help raise or least hold temps too? Sitting here with no heat source, planned to build the screen box but now like this one! Thanks for sharing.
hi. i think this would work great with greenhouse. the fan is just a straight connect from the solar panel wires to the wires on the fan (just connect negative to negative and positive to positive). then when the sun is out (and the heater is heating) the fan will run and when the sun goes down (and the heater isn't heating) the fan stops.
I can't believe you use a screwdriver to screw in your screws. Don't you have a bit on your drill you can use? Edit: OK, I see you use a drill later in the video.
Hi I have a question about the Slim factor of this panel : I'm from Italy so i don't truly understand the mesurements. Could you write them for me? I basically would like to know how thick the whole thing is and how deep is the inside of the panel. Thank you very much if you will answer. Ciao Chiara
I'm really enjoying your videos on solar heating. This video with the channels, what was the outside temperature to get the results of this solar heater? Thanks Charlie
hi. those are used to direct the air in a serpentine or "snake like" pattern so it has the most time to heat up before being drawn out of the collector.
hi, and thanks. i'm still experimenting with the collector (adding aluminum strips etc...) so i haven't permanently sealed it (but the best thing i know of to use is just 100% silicone caulk).
For maximum efficiency you should pull the air from the house and not the outside...similar to how an automobile would work. Heating exterior air makes the design more susceptible to under cooling due to temps outside.
hi there. the glass sits on the rectangular frame only. the horizontal dividers are just a sliver lower than the glass. (main reason for this is that even though the lumber looks completely flat is actually has slight bends/curves in it and those slight variances in the wood make it impossible to lay the glass flat if the dividers are touching the glass)
I have experimented building 3 A2 size solar mesh air heaters using black A2 foamboard, timber sides, foamboard channel sides sandwiching a fine black mesh (7 channels) and "double glazed" 2 acrylic sheets. Each has a 5cm USB fan. One feeds into the next which feeds into the next. I have achieved almost 20°C temperature rise see photo. I have a Facebook group on homemade solar air heaters for sharing information (very early days). Can anyone suggest better materials? What temperature rises can I expect in winter sun in UK? Anyone else tried a "chain" of them? Anyone have figures for fan speed vs temperature rise? With UK gas (not gasoline) and electricity sky high we need all the help we can get.
What will get the temperature up is a bigger size like 3 feet wide x 6 feet high and 4 inch deep and used thermo glass and isolating the back,with 6 feet hight you dont need a fan!
Best and easiest build I've seen. I'm going to try this for my dog house this winter. Thanks for the great video.
Awesome! Thank you! i think it should work good for a dog house
How much time do you spend in your doghouse?😁
This was the most thorough solar furnace video that I have seen. Thank you so much. I'm subscribing to your channel.
Just a suggestion. You should put the fan in the intake side of the holes because it will last longer with cool air instead of hot damaging air.
That's a good point, though I can see him putting it there because a fan is much more effective pulling than pushing.
@@raywharton9425 What do you mean? Does not fan both pull and push air all the time?
@@Teknopottu that is true, but if the air has to travel through a restriction more so on one side of the fan than the other, for example an open room on one side and a duct (or baffles) on the other, then it's better for the fan to pull air from the restricted side and push it in to the open side. In terms of air moved per energy utalized by the fan. The air blowing from a fan is very turbulent, and creates a lot of drag going into a restriction, but blowing into an open space the drag is minimal. The air on the suction side hasn't been made turbulent by the fan and being under suction is at lower pressure, both factors lead to less drag, which is a more important factor on the more restricted side of the system.
@@raywharton9425 Thank you for your comment. There is a lot for me to learn from aerodynamics.
Seems I misunderstood the original comment. I thought it meant that why not install a fan ALSO in the air intake. Misreading can be a thing because English is not my primary language.
So, a fan works best by pulling from smaller/restricted place and blowing on bigger/less obscured, right? Does it mean that the fan would work in most effective way if installed on the vent inside the room that it's blowing the hot air in? Building a heater soon and been wondering about this.
@@raywharton9425 The way I understood this it's better to install the fan inside my house then and not inside the heater. Thank you for your time!
Thank you for the excellent instructional video and, especially, for the specs regarding the materials!
hi there. you're welcome. 😎
Great video! The little fan would work great in the return pipe from your room being heated. Cooler air is denser and the fan will move it more efficiently.
I like this idea. Dude so glad you used the drill to screw towards the end. It was killing me to see you screw the first ones by hand. Man I can be lazy sometimes
you be killing that carpet lol nice vid
Fan would be easier to service if it was built onto the outside. Hot air expands. Would the performance be boosted if the cleats were farther apart at the top (or closer together at the bottom)?
What was the temperature outside before you measured the temp. inside the duct? That's important for me, because I really liked the way you made this and am thinking on doing the same, but I'm curious about how much hot air it would draw out on a winter day. Overall, very nice video.
would lining the back with tin increase its heat absorbing ability?
Did you ever add the flashing to see how much of an increase you could get? Also what is the furthest you have pulled air from you solar furnace builds while maintaining heat? I have a shop with full exposure to the sun on the south side until almost dusk and I was looking to build a few large solar furnaces to keep it from requiring to much gas to heat. I had planned to run some 4" insulated flexible ducting from the units to come out of the ceiling or wall. The flexible ducting will be used to cover the open storage I have between the wall and workshop so I would be pulling air from about 10-15 feet from the unit. Thanks for all the great videos.
Thanks for the share of knowledge!
I love all the comments about using a screwdriver. It shows just how little people know about building these days.
What if you made your inner frame out of steel cans?
If the idea is to route the air through the box and slow it to maximize heat pick up/ transport then wouldn't it be best to put as many channels inside as physically possible?
Quick question....when putting the back on would it help to caulk before screwing it on? Second, if you built this unit deeper and had more air capacity do you see hotter temperatures when you compare this unit vs the one you made with the downspouts?
Great job! Would insulating box help raise or least hold temps too? Sitting here with no heat source, planned to build the screen box but now like this one! Thanks for sharing.
very impressive. how is the temp range over say 5 hours with 2.5 hours in being high noon? If through wall or window how is impact on a given room?
Hola, se puede tomar el aire de entrada desde el mismo interior de la casa ?
Gracias
hi. yes you can if you want to.
i will be doing the same. thanks for the video.
How do you connect the fan to the solar panel? Sorry I’d love to make this for my greenhouse build :-) great idea and such a slim nice design ❤
hi. i think this would work great with greenhouse. the fan is just a straight connect from the solar panel wires to the wires on the fan (just connect negative to negative and positive to positive). then when the sun is out (and the heater is heating) the fan will run and when the sun goes down (and the heater isn't heating) the fan stops.
Maybe fan on the outside or in the house may last longer too?
I can't believe you use a screwdriver to screw in your screws. Don't you have a bit on your drill you can use?
Edit: OK, I see you use a drill later in the video.
Would it be better to have both fans further to the left, to lengthen the heat path ?
Hi I have a question about the Slim factor of this panel : I'm from Italy so i don't truly understand the mesurements. Could you write them for me? I basically would like to know how thick the whole thing is and how deep is the inside of the panel. Thank you very much if you will answer. Ciao Chiara
I'm really enjoying your videos on solar heating. This video with the channels, what was the outside temperature to get the results of this solar heater? Thanks Charlie
Thank you for sharing this!
Could I build this from R-board?
I don't imagine why you couldn't! Just be sure to protect the surfaces from UV exposure! = )
This is the second video where they use a drill to make a hole for the screws in but used a hand screw driver to put the screws in??
I didn't catch the reason for dowels?
hi. those are used to direct the air in a serpentine or "snake like" pattern so it has the most time to heat up before being drawn out of the collector.
@desertsun02 I thought that was what the boards under the dowels were for?
Hi, how you able to determine you fan size and capacity? Thanks.
What is temperature difference
Awesome dude! just one question...where's the solar cell to supply that fan??
it's sitting on the ground and to the left of the collector (if facing it).
another great video!... where do I get the solar fan?
I have seen similar builds that use no fan, simply an intake and outflow holes.
hi there. the fan is just a computer case fan. amazon and fry's electronics are 2 good places to get them
Great video! What did you use to bed the front screen onto the support rail - and how has the seal held up to high temps? Thanks for sharing 😃
hi, and thanks. i'm still experimenting with the collector (adding aluminum strips etc...) so i haven't permanently sealed it (but the best thing i know of to use is just 100% silicone caulk).
For maximum efficiency you should pull the air from the house and not the outside...similar to how an automobile would work. Heating exterior air makes the design more susceptible to under cooling due to temps outside.
Ive seen a video about installing on the inside of a windows I think would be a good idea if you dont mind blacking out window
How does this compare against the other ones you have made.
Nice work! Does the glass sit on the rectangular frame only or also is supported by the horizontal dividers?
hi there. the glass sits on the rectangular frame only. the horizontal dividers are just a sliver lower than the glass. (main reason for this is that even though the lumber looks completely flat is actually has slight bends/curves in it and those slight variances in the wood make it impossible to lay the glass flat if the dividers are touching the glass)
Cheers! Will be making this one soon!
I have experimented building 3 A2 size solar mesh air heaters using black A2 foamboard, timber sides, foamboard channel sides sandwiching a fine black mesh (7 channels) and "double glazed" 2 acrylic sheets. Each has a 5cm USB fan. One feeds into the next which feeds into the next. I have achieved almost 20°C temperature rise see photo. I have a Facebook group on homemade solar air heaters for sharing information (very early days). Can anyone suggest better materials? What temperature rises can I expect in winter sun in UK? Anyone else tried a "chain" of them? Anyone have figures for fan speed vs temperature rise? With UK gas (not gasoline) and electricity sky high we need all the help we can get.
What was the outside temperature during this video?
hi there. it was in the low 50's Fahrenheit ✔
@@desertsun02 Thanks for the reply!!
What will get the temperature up is a bigger size like 3 feet wide x 6 feet high and 4 inch deep and used thermo glass and isolating the back,with 6 feet hight you dont need a fan!
Thanks for sharing
you're welcome 👍
Are you or do you know of anyone who is building these for sale in southern Arizona? I would like to purchase several for use in my mobile home.
hi there. i'm not sure who might sell these. they're pretty easy to make though :)
Teşekkür ederim. Ben de fikrinizden istifade ederek yapacağım. Türkiye'den selamlar.
you're welcome
The solar box work great save me a lot of money on Electric bill
I got my fans out of computers
COULDN'T U JUST SQUEEZE THAT LAST BAFEL TO MAKE THE FAN MOVE BY IT SELF??? WIND MILL ????????
buena idea!
thanks!
Poor carpet but nice work tho:)