Solar chicken and rabbit waterer--macdaddy system!

[logguy]

If you have an old water heater, you probably know how to use it to collect hot water. And if this I you, I have question for you...

Take a look at my crude drawing and stupid questions and tell me if this will work or if I have adjustments to make such as adding a check valve or changing the height of any components or pipe diameter.

Any help is greatly appreciated as I've got some of this baby already installed.

Happy new year!

[logguy]

Ok. How the heck do I attach the photo?

[StressMan79]

Photo bucket acct/img tag, or "attachments" @ bottom of forum runner.

ForumRunner_20141227_171718.jpg

Sent from my Galaxy S4 using Forum Runner

[logguy]

Not working. :-( Must be that I'm using my iphone.

[logguy]

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1419723638.022637.jpg

I can't read my own writing either. :-(

[logguy]

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1419724042.714846.jpg

Here are the totes connected.

[rreidnauer]

You'll need an overflow for you totes. Watering nipples may be over-pressurized by high head pressure of water heater tank being so high, and may not work correctly. Might have to move tank to a lower area.

[loghousenut]

And you might need to rework your handwriting.

[loghousenut]

Nah, just fooling with you. I can read it all but I am not much good at mapping it out on paper so I''ve tried to keep my keyboard quiet... it ain't easy.

[logguy]

The old water heater has to be above the solar collector for the thermowhatchamacallit action to take place (heat rises). I could lower the collector to the ground and lay the water heater on its side--and even suspend it from the rafters to get it lower still. But there's a lotta pressure coming from the totes--and I may have to lower them so that the pressure doesn't push the water out of the collector before it has a chance to heat up.

So I think the top of the tote needs to be below the bottom of the collector.

Another issue is that, for this system not to freeze in the winter, I need to probably have at least a small 250 watt pail deicer hanging in the tote as well as a pump and pressure regulator hooked up between the tote and the collector to ensure continuous flow (and/or arrest the tote pressure), whether the water in the water heater gets hot or not. Two lbs of pressure max on the nipples or they'll leak and ice icicles will form.