How to Build Your Own Solar Water Heater

Solar water heater is a great and an innovative way of heating water, as it eliminates the cost of electric heaters or gas. The solar water heater has solar panels that utilize solar energy to heat the water. These panels are usually set on the house roofs for better absorption of the sun's rays. A solar heater converts solar energy into heat energy.

It comprises many aluminum panes lined with glass, which causes a better reflection of the incident sunrays. It contains tubes that carry water that get heated due to these rays. This water is circulated continuously in a manner such that the hot water rises up and the cold water comes down. Due to this, the water remains heated all the times. There are mainly two types of solar water heaters: active and passive. The active heaters have circulating pumps and controls; whereas, the passive heaters do not have pumps and controls. The solar water heaters are being used for both domestic and commercial purposes like in homes, flats, bungalows, hotels, hospitals, hostels, dormitories and even in industries.

How to Build Your Own Solar Water Heater
The only investment one has to make for building a solar water heater is the materials required for its construction. These materials are easily available at any hardware shops at an extremely affordable price. Make sure you don't waste money on any fabricated system, as these systems are very expensive. The steps involved are:

• Select a location for the solar water heater on a side of the house that has maximum southern exposure for maximum sun radiations. Installing the water heater at the ground level will also do.
• Paint the water tank black with a black paint. This will help the tank absorb maximum energy of the sun as dark colors absorb more heat as compared to light colors.
• Construct a plywood box for the tank and make an incline in the box so that the heater can be positioned upright to produce hotter water. Insulate the interior of the box with fiberglass to minimize energy loss.
• Put the water tank in the box and connect the plumbing fittings and pipes to the lower side of the tank. These pipes carry the water from the house, which usually goes into the regular water heater, to the solar water heater. Connect one more set of pipes from the top of the heater that will go back to the regular water heater in the house, which acts as a backup unit and maintains the water warm until needed.
• Insulate the exposed pipes to protect them from freezing in cold weather. For this, an insulating foam can be used or a wrapping fiberglass insulation around the pipes will also be highly effective. Cover the box with window glass or clear plastic to maintain the heat within the box.

Hence, with a little effort, you can easily build your own solar water heater. It is one of the simplest and cost-effective method of constructing a solar water heater. These heaters will slash down your electricity bills to minimum and will also help in saving the earth's store of fossil fuels.