Would You Like To Save $20/mo. with DIY Solar Water Heater?

Question

I save $20/mo. on our water heating bill by installing a solar pre-heater made of 200' of garden hose on my roof. From Amazon I bought two 100' GILMORE 3/4 inch FLEXOGEN  hoses (withstands 500 psi pressure), laid it out  n garage roof, hooked it to the cold water pipe that goes to gas waterheater. Now all cold water to the waterheater is solar pre-heated.  I installed 3 shut- off valves, in case I want to take the solar heater out of the system. One at the beginning of the garden hose loop, one at the end, and one in the coldwater line between the beginning of the solar heater loop and the end. It cost me $140 for the hose and less than $60 for the rest.
At $20 savings in gas a month, it will have paid for itself in l0 months. To use mostly solar-heated water, we don't use hot water before 10 or after 4.
I did this 3 months ago and the gas waterheater hasn't been on since. The solar heated water is 135F, and the gas waterheater is at 125F. We always get 135F water at the faucet

Subconscious point of view · Accepted Answer

so you designed a heat exchanger, not too shaby. however it is time restricted and therefore not functional. 
>when do most poeple shower?, before 10, and after 4
>great idea but ill pay the 0.65$ a day to shower at my leisure

Don K · Answer

People need to stop discrediting something they know nothing about. Test it before you start telling how it will not work. 

One thing you guys have to keep in mind is you are heating the water in the 40 gal water tank. You do not get any water from the 200 foot of hose till you run 40 gallons. 

Can anyone here handle 135 deg water? You will mixing it with 70 to 80 deg water from the cold water side. So You could shower from 200 foot of 3/4 hose. One other thing to think about is how fast are you going to be running the water? Most shower heads (in the USA anyway) are water savers and don't really use much water. 

It takes about 4 days for the water in my water tank to cool down. We had a broken gas pipe and no way to heat the water. We both took showers for a couple of days before it got too cold to shower.

One other thing is that an 8 foot pool heater will heat a whole pool so why would not not make enough hot water to take a shower or bath?

I have built these types of heaters and I know they will work.

DR_NC · Answer

I am questioning how much water 200 feet of 3/4 hose will hold. When you have demand (hot water on), how much heat is added to the in coming water? When I lay 200 foot of hose on the ground and turn on the water, the water coming out the other end gets cold very quickly. Sounds like a good idea, but your loop is too small. I would love to hear more, however.

TechnoStuff · Answer

Check the package the garden hose came in, I have seen a warning on some hoses that you are not to drink the water that comes thru the hose (though we all did this when we were kids and didnt die), apparently there is something in the hose material that leaches into the water.
Not that it is likely to cause you a problem if you just shower but I use hot water from the tap for making instant cup-o-soup and know that my wife has used hot water to reduce the time it will take for a pot to boil. 
Just a thought.

hohl · Answer

It relies upon the place you reside and what variety you install. We lived merely off the equator for 18 months and had a 40 5 gallon drum on the roof of the residing house - it replaced into painted matte black and on the tip of the day, the water replaced into heat sufficient to take a tub. in case you mean a water heater it particularly is assisted with electrical energy from image voltaic panels - that could be nicely worth a attempt. inspect some testimonials first. My vote might bypass with in-line organic gas warm water warmers that basically warmth what you're utilising at factor of use.

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Would You Like To Save $20/mo. with DIY Solar Water Heater?

5 Answers