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rain barrel/heat sink combo
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Posted by hairmetal4ever Z7 MD (My Page) on Thu, Feb 4, 10 at 12:04
| Now I'm just crazy - thinking of intricate crap I'll never afford, but has anyone attempted this:
What if you could place a gutter system on your GH, that ran INSIDE the structure from the outside, to collect rainfall? Then, the rainfall went into rain barrels inside the GH that double as heat sinks. Ideally, as you use water to water the plants, more rain can fill it back up, keeping you supplied, and with plenty of water for thermal regulation...
I wonder how hard something like that would be to make? The hardest part would be, of course, getting the rain gutter from outside the greenhouse to the inside, and keeping it from freezing up in winter. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| I have this very setup. I use a one inch diameter pvc that has been cut in half to collect rain water.It elbows around and through the north wall of my greenhouse that flows into a 55 gallon black barrel. I place a small screen over the barrel to keep leaf litter and other stuff from getting into the system. It take around one inch of water to completely fill one barrel. My greenhouse is small and I am collecting water off of 100 sq ft of area. |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| I'm think it's a interesting idea and could be setup rather cheaply. Here in Washington we get a lot of rain, mostly in the winter, but no sun for heating. In our summer months, July, August and September, no rain. Eric |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| OK, another question - is there a way to "link" barrels? In other words, if one fills up, that it then would flow into a second barrel? I imagine just connecting a hose or pipe between them at the overflow point, at the top of the barrel would work. Other question: How do you keep the water from getting stagnant and stinking up the place? |
RE : rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| Brandond, how do you handle the overflow when it fills up? |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| It just runs over on the ground. My floor is gravel then a layer of wood chips. It does work well for what I do though. Once I start the season and get the barrel full it just takes care of itself as long as we receive our normal rainfall. I didnt have to supplement any water last year. |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| If you connect the barrels at the bottom they will both keep the same level. I have two connected this way with a pump between them. |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| Do you keep your barrels open or closed to the "outside?" |
heat sink1
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| For use as a thermal heat sink, does the water have to be "open" or can it be a closed barrel? |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| Closed is probably better as you won`t get evaporation which will add humidity. The most important thing is to position it for direct sunlight or it won`t gain much in the way of heat. |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| If the water is allowed to flow when ever it rains, are you washing away all the stored heat? I'm thinking it should have some kind of float system or bypass. Tops off water when needed. Eric |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| I have this setup as well. Link below, with some pics. I guess I have moved some pics around, but if you are interested, I can post them again. This works like an effin' dream. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Rainwater collection system
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| I get the idea, but photos are always fun to look at. Eric |
RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| Here are some pics. Gutters:
 Barrels:
 Float valves. These kick on the RO system if the water levels get too low, usually only in the middle of the summer:
 Pressure tank and pump:
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RE: rain barrel/heat sink combo
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| I am currently taking a class in solar energy. We are mostly concentrating on panels to heat water both for domestic use and space heating. We are peripherally involved in the renovation of a couple of 100 year old houses and one of my ideas is to line the inside walls of the basement with plastic 55 gal. barrels which would absorb heat throughout the summer months here in Michigan and then use that heat in the winter to supplement the diminished capacity of the solar panel system. These are not PV panels, but instead, they are simply circulating a fluid calculated to be optimal for heat exchange. Does anyone have info for calculating the BTU retention (both quantity and longevity) in the water barrels for this system? |
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