Solar Heating WVO
 

I have been working out how I am going to filter my newly found reserves of WVO and I started thinking about creating a solar collector to help heat it. Here's the idea: (tell me if you think this will work)

1. Find an old radiator from a vehicle and spray paint it black.

2. Sandwich the heater in a box between a piece of mirror and a piece of glass.

3. Run the WVO oil through it on the way to the centrifuge.

Seems like it should work. I don't have a place where I can get enough amps to safely run a pump motor and heater without running more circuits, so I was looking for a supplemental source of heat. We have a lot in Texas anyway, so why pay for heat when the sun is free? I could even sit the radiator on the roof if I had it attached to a flexible hose.

I haven't started processing my own WVO yet, but speaking on general mechanics, if you send it through the rad before it is completely clean it would just clog it up. I will also say that even if it was cleaned, I think that there are better heat absorption devices.

You can make your own radiator system with black abs pipe and elbows. With the pipe it is not a worry on clogging and you can make it any size you want.

Just my .02

B6

You've got it right. If you've seen any of my earlier posts, I said that I'm using solar in my new plant. What you just discribed is what we're doing...............I did some experiments last summer and found I could raise the temps to over 150 deg using abs pipe. My new building will have a 4" header pipe across the ridgeline, and another at the eve, with 1 1/2" abs pipe every 6". I live in the high desert of eastern oregon and have a lot of sunshine most of the year. I use this same style system to heat our pool in the summer.

Very dumb newbie question here.

Why heat the WVO if it is not in the tank in your truck yet...other than it can't be very cold when you filter it...has to at least flow. I did not know (or even think deeply) that it needed to be that warm to be filtered.

Tim

The warmer it is the faster it will filter...............

Sounds like a good idea. I figured with a radiator it would have been already filtered down to at least 100 microns, but even then it can gradually clog up the passages. Corrosion might be an issue also. I like the pipe idea. I wonder what would work better, a larger pipe with the oil moving slower or a smaller pipe with the oil moving faster?

4 inch id pipe holds approx 2.2 gallons per foot. Just calculate how large your biggest batch will be (ie 50 gal) divide by 2.2 (50/2.2 = 22.72) to find out how much pipe you will need (in this case approx 23 ft).

Since you live in Dallas a day in the sun will be more than sufficient, just remember to paint the pipe black.

You could actually just leave a black painted 55 gal drum sit in the sun but it would take a lot longer.

I was actually talking about useing the black ABS you can get from depot or lowes that is normally used for waste water in homes. Bypasses the need for paint and even if it gets scratched, it is still black.

Works for me

For some reason I locked in on Schedule 40 PVC

My problem is that I have a lot of direct afternoon sun where I live. My backyard is shaded by trees most of the afternoon. Good for the house, but bad for solar. Have any of you used band heaters for your barrels? Do they just suck up the electricity? I like the inline heater ideas better. Seems like less heat loss.