DIY Forced Air "Coroplast" solar panel

[johnlvs2run]

You use 100 times the kwh that I do.

[jimmyxtc69]

finally some decent music to accompany a video

[enticed2zeitgeist]

Great job! Thanks for sharing.

Could you tell me how warm the Panel gets in relation to the outside temp on cloudy days and sunny days? Does it still produce heat nicely when it's over cast and cold out?

[excalibur440]

@enticed2zeitgeist thanks for the interest and question. The panel generates 43 degrees average with direct sunlight to the inside air being pushed through it. That number does drop depending on how heavy the cloud layer is. How ever the panel will still make heat on a medium or light over cast. My panel works best in the winter because the sun is lower on the horizon and more direct to the panel. The ambient outside temp is irrelevant to it's operation. It can be 10 below and still make heat.

[excalibur440]

@enticed2zeitgeist part 2

The unit works best with direct sun light, no different then one getting a sun burn while up snow skiing. if your going to build a panel great. The only thing that I would suggest is build a filter system. with that volume of interior air blowing thru it, it will collect dust and lint just like a forced air furnace. When I get some time I'm going to put together a video showing how to build a filter system. pop cans or Coraplast the concept and system does work.

[TheBuilderguy1]

As a response to some... try to build a window for 20 bucks... and in the summer you can shove a little insulation in the exhaust and intake of this and stop the heat gain. try that with a window.

[excalibur440]

It's running right now with the original Coroplast, if you took the time to notice the date of when I built this you would have seen it has been two years. FYI, it has not degraded. You wrong, and even if it does fail (after this much time) now I will simply spent a whooping 20 bucks and replace it. Thanks for your comment, "TheSolarmike"

[TheSolarmike]

Coroplast is made from polypropylene and is a thermoplastic. Also it cannot be made uv stable. It will fail.

[tamgiang]

love the dog!!!

[ad2181]

Guess what, using a insulated window (same area) will result is the same heating without the need for the shop-vac that running off the grid.

[saintveil]

Computer fan motors will run on solar cell or tesla radiant energy with supercap. Convert a solar garden light...

[zeineguy]

my question to you, is.. would it not naturally have its own heat exchange? I see almost every design with fans, which i understand the use. But if you didnt use a fan, wouldnt the hot air rise and go into the house, and then the cold air would come in the bottom naturally? I have seen some with vacuums, which i think exchanges the air too fast, to having computer fans hooked up to solar panel.

[excalibur440]

@zeineguy Yes, air does draft through the panel on it's own, but not enough to heat the building. I'm sure that it would be more efficient as a passive panel if the flutes of the heat exchanging medium where vertical rather then horz. The object of the Vacuums is to move as much air as possible thru the panel to maximize the limited hours that the sun shines in the winter months, yet maintaining a positive increase of temperature of the air exiting the panel.

Thanks for the question.

[exploregirl]

Thanks for the reply. I have another question about solar panels it needs to have some groundwires how about lightening stricking into solar panels noone talks about it/ i want to make one of cans or aluminium boxes of electricity power boxes for compituters but problem is winter lightening we often have here in Bosnia. I like your panel but problem is i don`t have idea what coroplast is so not much help for me buliding it the same way. But i appreciate every ideas.

[exploregirl]

WHO IS THE SINGER ON SONG PLEASE TELL.

[excalibur440]

@exploregirl

The Band is "Pink Floyd" off the album "The Wall" released 30 November 1979

The song is "Comfortably Numb"

The lead vocals for this song is "David Gilmore"

hope that answers your question. BTW that's the best question that I have been asked since I posted this video, Thanks.... :0)

[exploregirl]

Hello greeting and than zou for posting this video. Excellent idea. Please can zou tell WHO SINGS THIS SONG ZOU PUT ON BACKGROUND. WHO IS THE SINGER OR BAND.

[zekehooper]

That's really cool. If the air blows slower will itheat up more? I've seen vid's where people use painted beer or soda cans with no fan, just the natural heat exchange. That seems to work pretty good also. Anything to cut down on the heating bill.

[britepipe]

ive been working with coroplast for a few years off and on..it works very well with water or as a water heater too..only downside is bonding it, dang near impossible for water since nothing permanantly bonds to it and welding it is tedious at best and not leak proof either because the material is so thin..but i'll keep tryin..anyway if u would like to know howto boost your coroplast air heaters temp up drop me a line..nice job man.

[TaylorHolmes]

dan rojas is certainly a badass.

[MrLeonard55]

Try using a solar fan

[eddiequest4]

Great job - I did something with what they call a trombe wall. And it occured to me that with your window facing the sun, you might be able to add some heat that way.

Anyway, thanks for the video.

[eggaweb]

I made a smaller one similar to that one for my window. It sits on the inside of the window so I don't need the piping.

[PonyHaven]

This method works well as a water heater also. I made one in the early '90s that heated water to more than 80 degrees Celsius.

It was made in the same way as yours is, and produced very positive results :) .

[chuckebaker]

Thanks for posting this video. I enjoyed the detailed walk from begining to end. I Googled coroplast and found out you can get it from the factory in black. This would save the painting stage. Do you think a thicker sheet would allow for more air movement while still having enough retention time to heat up?

[avid0g]

Oh my! Please take all this as constructive criticism: Your system has extremely restricted airways! It is way too complicated, and wouldn't you prefer to have a picture window there instead? if so, build a window with two sheets of glass separated by 1/8th inch, let the sunlight heat the indoors directly. If not, use the glass on the box, insulate the inside with foil-faced fiberglass batting, paint the foil with nickel or chrome oxide black, and run insulated duct to/from the house.

[excalibur440]

I would not prefer to have another picture window in the panels location. If you watch the video you'll notice that the panel is a foot away from a window as large as the panel. The system is not restricted?, have you been here and watch it run? Post a video of the solar panel you've made from recycled materials, I'm fairly certain I could rip it and your ideas apart. Have a great day. :0)

[doyouseewhatisee2010]

PVC is ok up to 170 if it hoter you need CPVC.but i wood use beer cans. i have maney of tham lol

[excalibur440]

It's no PVC it's ABS- PVC will not hold up, it melts and looks like hell.

[brotherjupiter]

Would be cool to compare the efficiency of the corigated poly with the aluminum beverage cans painted black ,ends drilled out and strung together for a heat exchanger.

Just made a horizontal 30 on propane tank wood stove with bottom cut out inside ring base for door with a 6"

stove pipe at op end through side wall.

Very efficient unit and cheap!

[excalibur440]

Cheaper then fillin' that propane tank with gas I'll bet...Cool idea!

[definitionofis]

If the corrogation runs vertically, i wonder if you could get good airflow with no blower since hot air rises.

[excalibur440]

This question makes a lot more sense then the one you removed...LOL The answer to your thought/question is yes and no. A panel will circulate air when the blower is not running. Mine moves air by it's self even with the flutes running horizontally. But in my case anyway it's not enough to heat this building by volume, even though the static air temp exiting the panel often exceeds 150 degrees Fahrenheit on a sunny day. Thanks for your thought.

[tcbink]

Get yourself a heater blower from a car. It will run on 12v that can be powered by a small solar panel and battery.

[excalibur440]

Yep, that's the route I'm going to take. Just been a busy summer. Thanks for you comment.

[rikkiesix]

Dan is the man.

And you too.

Great job.

Love it.

Greetings from Belgium

Erik

[MrAndydore]

So can you let us know about how much money you have tied up in your heater. I know the glass you used had to be special cut, it couldnt have been to cheap.

[excalibur440]

Ya, I had explained the glass, but it got edited out, because of the 10 min limit on the videos, sorry. The glass was given to me by my sister,during a remodel of her house, it's an 1/8" storm window. The the panel was designed and built to fit the glass. The wood was used concrete forms that I picked up for nothing and all the other components ABS, caulk, paint ect. where bought from Home depot for $90.00. Great question, thank you.

[warrockbites]

ghostrider doesnt realize that you want black to absorb the heat, bright colors reflect heat. I believe you could have bought the coroplast in black. Most sheets are available in colors. Nice project!

[excalibur440]

Yes you are correct. Flat black does absorb the maximum energy. The last thing that you would want is a reflective surface in this configuration. You are also correct, coroplast does come in black the sign shop that I bought mine from only stocks white and they are 72 miles from my location. The video doesn't really show it but the product is glossy. So, even with black I would have painted it flat black anyway. I fired the panel up today and it still is working great. Thanks for the comments.

[muddymuddymuddmann]

Hey I know 2 things to consider, first is that there is 746 watts per horse power. the shop vac uses more than that, and a space heater is usually 1500 on high. second is the slower the air moves the higher the heat will build up in the panel. the surface of the panel is the power collective ability. so in final conclusion , my suggested solution is try it with the box fan on different power settings. i believe the overall performance should be quiet and interesting.GREAT JOB.

MUDDy

[STARFIRESOLAR]

Try using the motor/blower out of a hair dryer. Get the "straight through" type. I got an old one from the thrift store for a buck and took the motor/blower unit out of it. The motor is a 12V DC motor. The motor and blower are one unit. Cut all wires and a small jumper off at the two terminals and rewire it. Positive and negitive wires reversed and you get reverse flow, but use the same flow direction as in the hair dryer to keep motor cool. You can use a PV panel to power it and your set !

[excalibur440]

Yes that's a great idea. I was thinking about tearing into a remote controlled "ducted fan" F15 jet model and putting that fan system on a 110motor. The model weighs 8 pounds and flys at 105 mph. That might move some air as well. But I don't think I could get enough power out of a PV setup. I've thought about your idea it may be even better if a guy picked up two hair dryers and had a fan pushing at the intake and one pulling at the exhaust. Do you have a video showing the air flow in you setup?

[STARFIRESOLAR]

Whoa! I wouldn't go tearing into a model jet motor just for a fan to move some air around.

The Idea of 2 blowers is a good idea, but 1 intake, 1 output is not the most efficient configuration and drawing the air thru the collector rather than pushing it thru, you'll get better flow.

Put both blowers on the collector output drawing air thru the collector and blowing into the house.

Cold Air return from the floor, or near it, back to the collector. But you probably already know that. :)

[ghostriderinnc]

ok I'm gonna say it. Painting the back black is wrong wrong wrong. You want a reflective back like tinfoil, or radiant barrier foil you need a reflective backing it causes two passes. I use aluminum charcoal window screen works great get shower door windows from scrap yard. Make the frame out of sheet metal and rivets for permanent use. The wood will rot over time try my method I'm getting ranges between 130-148 on south side of house in winter. Best wishes.

[solarxpert1]

Just got my 5" monocrystalline solar cells at Solar-Deals(.)com. Great price and good quality. Labor Day Sale ends Saturday. Promo: LABORDAY

[Bonair7777]

It seems to me that if the object is to raise the temperature of the room air, then the intake should be from the top of the room and the discharge should be at the bottom of the room?

[excalibur440]

Good question:

If you did that the hot air would just rise and be pulled back into the panel again in a loop, granted to would work eventually, but it's quit a bit less efficient . By pulling the cooler/ denser air low and having the discharge at the top the ceilings warmer air is slowly pushed down much more uniformly through out the room. The heat is very similar to the wood stove that I have in my shop, and it's pretty hard to beat wood heat. Hope that makes sense. Thanks for the question.

[RadiancePower]

thin aluminum like foil is better as aluminum is even better than copper for dispersing heat to air..if u have to use coroplast (i tried it) they make a conductive version which is more like metal than regular coroplast. 20x more conductive but still way worse than aluminum.looks good.peace

[excalibur440]

The blower/shop vac that I was using in the video is 65watts, the primary heater in my shop 3000watts.

[localbroadcast]

how much does the electricity cost of a blower fan compare to the cost of running a conventional heater???? that's the real question that needs answering.

[buckstarchaser]

I like your work. My thoughts are:

1) cut your sheet to place the chanels vertical (heat rises, should help move the air for you)

2) get a friendly nerd to connect a manifold and room temp probe to RC servo controlled top and bottom dampers and a relay for your fan (you can use a cheap hobby microcontroller) to stop night cold and stop heat in the summer.

3) use reflective insulation (shiny bubble wrap) behind the coroplast to keep heat in rather than draw heat out of the back of the box

[dissent4freedom]

very nice, I commend you on your commitment/willingness to cut holes before even testing!

[excalibur440]

Thanks,

some time you have to go for it....LOL

[steviebboy69]

looks really good. wow over 7000 kwh in a month i saw mine was 800-1200 in 3 months. but i dont use electric for heating except for the inverter split system in this little room. or gas. we dont have snow. and winter is cold but not like some areas.

-3.c overnight and 10c + or minus in the day.

[STARFIRESOLAR]

Use of the coroplas is not as efficient as the can method. Plastic is not a good conductor of heat for one thing and the coroplas, like the cardboard, with it's very small air channels severely limits air flow. Remember how the saw cut closed up? If you had to pry it apart to insert the coroplas, it most likely will get hot and close the channels of the coroplas. Remaking the absorber with the can method or even using aluminum downspout will greatly increase the efficiency of your unit.

[enicao]

-looks like a giant flat screen TV on your wall.

-how is the ratio energy collected by the panel, energy consumed to build it?

[frugalist55]

nice work, did one a few years ago built into roof but I like yours as retrofit. Like to suggest I would insulate frame so as it doesn't rob heat from absorber, and box in the ends to form the manifolds, also perforate part strip the skin on the underside-ends of the plastic sheet, helps to diffuse flow into absorber, no need for tubes-cheaper too!

[Jels95]

its a great video, i have 3 questions for you,

1- Can this be made in a smaller size

2-Can you put the instructions(written)?

3-How does it work?

[PRODIGY5369]

Nice video, and great job on the project, thanks for sharing, I uploaded a response myself to Green power science, mainly about water heating but mentioning the correx material used here, be nice to see it used as a backboard in the soda can varieties. Thanks for sharing.

[excalibur440]

Thanks for the comments, ya that would really compound the heat.

[packagewarren]

what the heck is a 90? talk in laymans language.

[excalibur440]

Some portions of the video that explained what a "90" is, where is bought it, the specific part numbers and the like had to be cut out due to You Tube time limits. Which you will discover if you ever edit and post a video. ;0)

The "90" is the 3" diameter 90 degree ABS (black plastic pipe) ELL-bow at the end of the longer piece of black plastic pipe. You can google ABS pipe for a deeper clarification, I bought the pipe and parts at Home Depot. Thanks for the question.

[excalibur440]

Your welcome and thank you

[iworkforme]

didn't quite get how the shop vac was used? guessing it blew in to a closed loop thru the abs into the panel and back into the shop somehow?

[02phill]

orrr paint ya entire house black :P

[mostvideosolar]

Luvely stuff.. looks light weight..sounds noisy..lol .. fit a capillary thermostat.. then your automatic..I'm playing with mirror perspex on the panel at the moment & liking the results..p.s.. the sky clip 7.33.. definetly chemical..

[budchin1]

Great job on your project!

Have you considered using solar 3v DC fans on both the intake and exhaust ports? It may be a nice way to circulate the air without using your homes power.

Also, I've seen an interesting idea of adding a few sealed steel pipes with a resevoir on the bottom and a small vent hole on top, somewhat like a 'thermometer', partially filled with 'mineral oil'. This helped retain residual heat after sundown.

[excalibur440]

Thanks for your comment, I'm still thinking about diff. ideas for blowers, solar would be a great option if I could get enough CFM's. I have not thought about retaining any of the heat, but the oil filled pipes may get some more working time out of the panel. Good idea.

[DrewTracey]

You know... I thought about using PVC pipe for mine, with this exact method, though I was considering using 3 inch pipe instead of 2... ,but instead opted to just use the cavity of the box to force the air in... but I think you get tighter results than my box gets. Thanks for the great ideas. Where did you get the glass from?

[excalibur440]

I have not had very good luck with PVC in these things. My ABS pipe is 3" and works well, I would think that 2" would be fine. I almost built mine as you did the only reason I went this way was that could replace the core if the Coroplast didn't work. My glass is an 1/8" storm window off an old house that had the wood framed windows replaced. Check around you can reclaim the glass out of old patio doors with broken frames and so on if you hunt around you'll find what you need. Thanks for asking

[excalibur440]

Wow, thanks Dan

Ya, feel free to use it how ever you can.

I will get a video response up over at your page. The day that I tested this panel it was hazy and a little overcast. the following day my results proved to be far better. At 20F clear skies with a 15 mph wind I was getting as much as a 56F degree increase in temp (71F intake and 127F at the exit port) constant. By 1:30 the interior of my building was 75.4F when I shut it off. I was burning up.. ;0) Thanks again for the kind words.

[GREENPOWERSCIENCE]

I added links to this video a 16 minutes in my video. Hope it gets you some views, this is a great video:-)

[GREENPOWERSCIENCE]

Excellent Job. Fantastic project. Can I edit it into a video, I will give you channel credits and place an annotation link in my video. Thank you for taking the time to do the video. You did an A+ job. Please feel free to post a video response.

[gmhippie]

Very Kool EX!