Build a Simple Solar Heater
I’m an Electrical engineer, but you don’t need a similar background to tackle this project. In fact, a solar hot-air collector built into new construction or added to an existing building can be an easy and inexpensive heating solution. Following the simple principles and plan outlined here, you can heat your workshop, barn, or even your home with free heat from the sun. If it works here in Bozeman, Mont., it’s bound to work wherever you are. I reviewed many solar collector concepts and decided to install a thermosiphon air collector on the south wall of the workshop. The elegant, simple thermosiphon design uses only the buoyancy of heated air to create circulation through the collector, eliminating the cost, maintenance, and power consumption of fans, sensors, and controllers commonly used in other collector designs. On a sunny day, in a cold climate like ours, this simple system can produce heat equivalent to burning about Rs.150.00 worth of propane (equivalent to about Rs.200.00 for