Experimenting with putting together an inexpensive solar heater. Trying to reduce heating bills during harsh winter months.
HOME SOLAR HEATER ISSUES
1. Inside Window
A. Blocks light into the house and view to the outside.
B. May detract from indoor décor.
1. Outside Window
A. Home association or planning/ zoning issues.
B. Unattractive
2. Inside of an exterior door
A. Blocks light into the house and view to the outside.
B. May detract from indoor décor.
3. Outside of exterior door
A. Blocks light and view
B. Unattractive
4. Outside wall or roof.
A. May not be feasible or aesthetically pleasing depending on south facing wall.
B. Will require cutting holes thru the wall
C. May require ugly hoses or pipes if run thru a window.
D. May cause roof or wall to leak rain water.
Solution (s)
Use smaller designs and cover only half the window so light can come in and allows view to the outside. Cover the back of the heater with something the matches the color of the room or trim or get creative by matching flooring or counter tops or cabinets if in the kitchen or bathroom. At the very least, it can be painted to match your trim and matching trim attached to the back of the heater.
On full length exterior glass doors, for example, French doors, only put the solar heater on the bottom half of the door.
Place interior solar heaters in less used areas of the house.
Place a narrow mirror at the base of the smaller heater lying flat where it projects more sun onto the heater.
Design exterior solar heaters so that they are inconspicuous to neighbors or at least match the exterior of the house and from the front of the house. They can also be hidden behind privacy fences or to the side of shrubs or bushes, or placed behind the rail of a porch or deck. Just make sure that the sun is not blocked from the solar heater, especially between 9 am and 3 pm.
A black or dark metal exterior door with a 2nd outer full length glass storm door can be modified into a solar heater if it faces South by cutting a vent hole in the top and bottom of the door. It will not work as efficiently, but is much less conspicuous. Be sure to partially cover the vent holes with for privacy.
• Note: There are mobile solar heaters that can be wheeled around to be positioned at different windows as the sun rays change to different sides of the house. Appear to work well, but take up a lot of floor space and may not be pleasing to look at.
• Note 2: Prioritize exterior doors and windows being considered for solar heaters. Even walls, windows, and doors that face south may have shadowing from trees, other buildings, etc. from peak sun hours.
• Note 3: Aluminum and copper painted black work the best for solar heaters, but steel will also work.
