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Solar Thermal From Scrap...AGAIN!


Onoff

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The pump, expansion vessel and control gear I bought on Gumtree is sat up in Willowbrae still awaiting collection. Was supposed to be by a Scots mate who lives down here. He's decided now though that fuel is too expensive to drive up now so he'll be coaching it.

 

However, the kind chap holding it for me up there is now packaging it all up for a courier.

 

I do though now have a wasps nest to get rid of right where I need to access to do the panels! 

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11 hours ago, Onoff said:

 

I genuinely have no idea.

 

...continuing on from the above comment...

 

I've an old hot water cylinder here. Acquired when someone upgraded to a combi, it seemed rude not to. Looks in good nick. 1" green insulation.

 

It measures 1000mm overall height and is nom 450mm diameter. I make this circa 165L. 

 

Is this any use in my cobbled together solar thermal system, 3 panels and the above pump gear?

 

I may have asked this before...it was so long ago...

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2 hours ago, SteamyTea said:

Plumb it in, could be useful as a water pre-heater.

 

That was the plan but guessing there'll be times I'll have a huge excess of hot water so thinking a storage tank too.

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37 minutes ago, Onoff said:

 

That was the plan but guessing there'll be times I'll have a huge excess of hot water so thinking a storage tank too.

Lots of different choices... 

IMHO I would install the option to divert all the heat into one tank when in winter and there is less solar energy, otherwise you end up with lots and lots of lukewarm water. (trust me I know)😧

Again, I would first work out how much hot water is going to be used a day. No point spending loads of money insulating tanks and in the summer the tanks leak warmth which is not welcome in the building. (or perhaps it is, if the tank is in your bathroom!??)

 

 

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19 minutes ago, Marvin said:

No point spending loads of money insulating tanks and in the summer the tanks leak warmth which is not welcome in the building. (or perhaps it is, if the tank is in your bathroom!??)

 

 

 

At the moment the HWC sits in the eaves just below that tiled cheek of the dormer.

 

IMG_20220415_162002480_HDR

 

Ostensibly the eaves are uninsulated and outside the scant thermal envelope of the dormer. 

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6 minutes ago, Onoff said:

 

At the moment the HWC sits in the eaves just below that tiled cheek of the dormer.

 

IMG_20220415_162002480_HDR

 

Ostensibly the eaves are uninsulated and outside the scant thermal envelope of the dormer. 

Hmm... the less you heat, then, the more money you save. My tank has 200mm of Supersoft and a box around it.

 

(Carrying out alterations at the moment....)

 

577740597_Hotwatertank.thumb.jpg.e1c4d7cec5cd8468daa785efdb0e9462.jpg

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7 minutes ago, Marvin said:

Hmm... the less you heat, then, the more money you save.

 

When you came down you went through the "stairs" room to get into the new downstairs bathroom (and kindly commented I think that it was like going into a different house 😂).

 

The floor of the stairs room has to come up, be insulated underneath  etc.

 

I have wondered at the merits of digging down and excavating a say 1500mm cube of dirt. (It's only digging). Then lining with pir and dropping an IBC tank in as a hot water storage tank.

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5 minutes ago, Onoff said:

I have wondered at the merits of digging down and excavating a say 1500mm cube of dirt. (It's only digging). Then lining with pir and dropping an IBC tank in as a hot water storage tank.

Hmm.. all sort of issues to overcome. Obiviously possible, but undermining foundations giving rise to heave would be my first concern, then drainage, then....

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8 minutes ago, Onoff said:

I have wondered at the merits of digging down and excavating a say 1500mm cube of dirt. (It's only digging). Then lining with pir and dropping an IBC tank in as a hot water storage tank.

Concrete base and circular chamber big enough for accessing tank, access through floor to be able to remove tank when required, automatic sump pump incase of flooding, tanking to walls...

 

Yes it can be done, just like your spectacular gates, but it might take a while with a hole open that SHMBO might object to/fall down.

 

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  • 1 month later...

I need to cut and shut these stainless brackets. They'll be welded together.

 

IMG-20220906-WA0016

 

The tile battens aren't that tall so I'll lose 10mm of the L bracket to bring it level with the tile:

 

IMG-20220906-WA0008

 

IMG-20220906-WA0010

 

I'll then shorten this leg, or maybe the other one with the longer slot as there'll be a bit more meat on it:

 

IMG-20220906-WA0014

 

Is 5mm clearance enough, from the underside of the bracket to face of tile below, as shown by the packer:

 

IMG-20220906-WA0018

 

Cheers.

Edited by Onoff
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Renusol spec 5 mm minimum from top of tile to underside of bracket. If your brackets are the same ebay ones Ive tried, and they look the same, they flex more than the renusol ones so 5 mm is an absolute minimum.

 

Its a tough call on how much clearance to have as the brackets push up the tile that sits on them so you have a big gap under the tile or have a big slot to cut in the tile so it sits back in place and doesn't lift the tiles around it

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