WE DO NOT recommended any DYI project that includes plumbing, unless you are, or have a licensed plumber on the project. Solar water heating systems can work “too good” and produce extreme temperatures more than enough to seriously hurt, potential kill.

That being said Solar water heaters are amazing. If you have the knowledge, tools, skill & time they are worth building. Here is a page we found that has a ton of great info.

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Solar Water Heating Porjects

http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/WaterHeating/water_heating.htm

Solar water heating systems have a good economic payoff, and are manageable systems to install or build as a DIY project. Some of the solar water heating designs are simple and low cost. You can save a great deal of money by building your own system — several thousand dollars. There are dozens of free plans listed below that should meet just about any need.

Simple batch systems are basically a tank painted black housed inside of a glazed box — they work well in warm climates, and can be used in cold climates if drained for the winter. There are also plans shown for quite a few solar water heaters that can be used in cold climates right through the winter — this includes our own $1,000 solar water heating system that has provided a solar fraction in excess of 90% through our cold Montana winter.

It is also possible to collect the federal tax rebate by using certified collectors, and building the rest of the system yourself.

My thanks to the people who have built systems, and then taken the time to send in pictures and descriptions for others to use.

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