(water bubbling)
- [Narrator] If you're looking for a cheap,
energy-efficient way to heat your pool,
making your own solar pool heater is a great option.
Not only can you use the power of the sun
to heat your water,
but the whole project will likely cost you less than $100.
So here's a step-by-step walkthrough
on how to put together your own DIY solar pool heater.
Let's dive in.
(upbeat rock music)
(water splashing)
Real quick, before we continue,
if you want more help taking care of your pool,
be sure to grab our free pool care cheat sheet
at swimuniversity.com/cheatsheet.
It's totally free and will help keep your pool
clean and clear all season long.
First, how does a DIY solar pool heater work?
The design of a homemade solar heater
is actually pretty simple.
(air whooshing)
Cold water is pulled from your pool by a sump pump.
The water then enters a coil of black tubing
that's warmed by the sun.
Then, that heated water returns back to your pool.
For this setup, you'll need a sunny spot off the ground
to set up your solar heater, and you'll need a few supplies
that should cost you less than $100.
(water splashing) All right, ready to build?
Here are the supplies you'll need
for your DIY solar pool heater.
One, at least 200 feet of 1/2 inch black irrigation hose.
This polyurethane hose can be bought either online
or at your local hardware store,
so it's worth shopping around for a good price.
Just make sure it's black,
since it needs to absorb the heat of the sun.
Now, keep in mind that you'll need more than 200 feet
if you have a larger pool.
Your hose length should equal at least 50%
of the square footage of your pool surface.
So for example, if your pool is 16 feet by 32 feet,
that's a surface area of 512 square feet,
and that means you'll need at least
256 feet of irrigation hose.
Two, a submersible pump.
The easiest option to get water flowing
through your irrigation hose is with a sump pump.
Hopefully, you'll already have one as a pool owner.
If not, this might be the priciest supply on the list
and could set you back about $50.
Three, an irrigation hose connector for your pump.
These are made specifically to connect
1/2 inch irrigation hoses to faucets and pumps.
Four, a plywood board and wood pieces to frame it.
This is the wooden tray where your irrigation hose will sit.
It will also keep your hose off the cold ground
and allow you to angle it towards the sun.
The size of your plywood
will depend on how much hose you're using,
but a 4x4 sheet of plywood
is big enough for about 200 feet of hose.
You'll also want wood to stabilize
and frame your sheet of plywood.
Also, an extra piece of wood is helpful
to hold down your coiled hose.
And to secure the wood,
you'll need either wood glue or a drill and nails.
(water splashing)
Here are a few optional supplies
to help your solar pool heater work even better.
Black paint, black plastic, or black roofing felt.
Painting the wooden tray black
or covering it with a black tarp or black roofing felt
will add more heat to your solar heater setup.
If you use plastic or roof felt,
you might need a staple gun to attach this to your wood.
(water bubbling) Clear plastic tarp.
Covering the entire tray with a clear tarp
will trap in more heat.
(water bubbling)
It's like turning your setup into a mini oven.
Black PEX tubing instead of irrigation hose.
PEX tubing is usually a lot more expensive
than black irrigation hose,
but irrigation tubing can wear down
from heat and pool chemicals after a few years.
So if you wanna invest in something
a little bit more long-lasting, use PEX coil.
A shutoff valve or ball valve.
A simple shutoff attachment at the end of your hose
will help control the flow of water,
and you can turn it off if it gets too hot.
A solar blanket or solar cover.
A solar blanket helps stop evaporation
and heat loss at night.
Without a solar cover,
you'll lose any temperature you've gained during the day,
so it's critical to keeping that heat in your pool.
Okay, so you've got your supplies.
And now here's how to put together
your DIY solar pool heater.
One, set up your wooden tray.
The goal is to keep your irrigation hose
mounted on something above the ground
that can angle towards the sun.
A flat sheet of plywood can work totally fine on its own,
but framing it by adding wood to the sides
will help make it more sturdy.
Two, line your wooden tray
with black fabric, black felt, or black paint.
If you want to increase the amount of heat you capture,
you'll wanna line your tray
with something black at this point,
but this is optional and might not be necessary,
especially if you have a smaller pool.
Three, coil up your irrigation hose on your wooden tray.
Start coiling your irrigation hose on your wooden tray.
Your hose should lie flat on the wood,
almost like a record on a turntable.
You'll wanna wrap the hose as tight as you can
so you can fit as many loops as possible.
Placing a 2x4 on top of the hose as you coil it
can be helpful to brace the hose.
It can also helpful
to have a second person hold things down.
Be sure to have the ends of your hose
on different sides of your wooden tray.
One of these ends is your inlet
where cold water is pumped in,
and the other is the outlet where hot water leaves.
They shouldn't enter and exit
at the same point in your pool water.
Four, wrap your solar heater in a clear tarp.
If you wanna wrap your solar heater,
now's the time to do that.
But again, this is an optional step.
You may wanna test your heater first
and then add the clear tarp afterwards.
Five, add your hose attachment.
Attach your irrigation hose connector
to the end of the hose that will be going into your pool.
This is to connect your sump pump.
Also, attach your shutoff valve or ball valve
to the opposite end of your hose, if you're using one.
Six, set up your solar heater and attach your sump pump.
Place your wooden tray near your pool
off the ground and in the sun.
Then, attach your sum pump to the irrigation hose connector,
submerge the pump in the water, and turn on your sump pump.
Be sure your hose outlet
is in the pool to return the hot water.
Now, if you're having trouble getting the water to warm up,
here are a few troubleshooting tips.
One, keep your sump pump and the returning hot water
on the opposite sides of the pool.
Make sure that your pump is pulling in cold water
and is far away from the hose
that's adding in the hot water.
This will increase the efficiency of your solar heater.
And place your pump as low as possible in the pool,
since colder water tends to be at the bottom.
Two, increase your pump speed.
The faster your flow rate,
the more heat you'll transfer to your pool water.
You might not notice a bigger temperature difference,
but you'll actually increase your heat energy transfer.
Aim for a two to five degree difference
between the water coming out of your pool
and the heated water going back into your pool.
A continued slow temperature rise
means you have an efficient heater.
Three, mount the coils off the ground
and maximize the heat from the sun.
You don't want the cold ground to cool off your tubing,
so make sure it's mounted slightly off the ground.
And like we mentioned before,
you can also line the tray with black plastic
or cover your coils in a clear tarp
for sun absorption and insulation.
And that's it.
If you need more help with pool maintenance,
grab our free pool care cheat sheet
at swimuniversity.com/cheatsheet.
And if you found this video helpful,
leave a comment, hit that like button,
and subscribe for more pool maintenance tutorials
throughout the season.
That's it, thanks again, and happy swimming.
(upbeat rock music)