Previous in Forum: New Evidence from Space Supports Stanford Physicist's Theory   Next in Forum: Genetic Mugshot Recreates Faces From Nothing But DNA
Close
Close
Close
3 comments
Rate Comments: Nested
Guru

Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 705
Good Answers: 8

Dripwall Delta. Get Seedlings Started Earlier

03/22/2014 12:32 AM

I started the dripwall project using aluminium insect screen to absorb heat from the air in the greenhouse. I though dripping water down the screen would absorb heat from the air and transfer it to the drip of water (but it did not work as planned). I abandoned screen and tried sheet metal, cooking trays, slate and charred 1 by 8 timber. They worked to absorb heat directly from the sky or from the sun instead. In the trial model I made it only absorbed about 50 watts at best, and transferred it to the water. The water just dripped into my seedling tray and got recirculated. Only 3 liters per hour and a max water heat increase of about 15 degrees in the water in full sun in February. When it was cloudy, it only gave a degree or 2 rise and when it was raining, it was less again. (Guess the rain absorbs heat or light radiation from the sky). I did a very crude version but the results impressed me. It got germinated seed through a week of below zero weather in a greenhouse, (but the greenhouse had an inch or 2 of ice on water in it). The drain of the dripwall was the only place on my property where azolla water fern survived the winter. I hope people look into this as one way to extend their gardening seasons. (I sowed cabbage, kohl rabi, new zealand spinach and beets in the unheated greenhouse on 20 January just to test the drip wall.) I wasn't expecting them all to survive. But they did. I show my simple version and a hydronic version. (I did not do hydronic because the chance of the water freezing for a week was too great). But in theory a hydronic version would be far more efficient. The dripwall is powered by an airlift pump and about 1 watt of electricity. I plan to run the air pump from a 15 watt solar panel next year but havn't found a good 12 volt air pump yet. The air pump is 100 ft away and it powers several other airlift pumps at the same time. The playlist about the dripwall project is at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkzXlmAwZTZfdL3kdnXUFzyaH09X2Wx1- Brian

Register to Reply
Interested in this topic? By joining CR4 you can "subscribe" to
this discussion and receive notification when new comments are added.

Good Answers:

These comments received enough positive votes to make them "good answers".
2
Guru

Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 8006
Good Answers: 286
#1

Re: Dripwall Delta. Get seedlings started earlier.

03/22/2014 6:02 AM

The likely reason dripping water down the screen did not increase the temperature of the water is that the large surface area of water in contact with air below the saturation vapor pressure would result in a reduction of temperature related to latent the heat of vaporization.

.

If you need to heat up water, an inexpensive but effective solar heater can be constructed with some tubing or flat plates painted black with a couple layers of glass above and surrounded in a well insulated frame.

__________________
Eternal vigilance is the price of knowledge. - George Santayana
Register to Reply Good Answer (Score 2)
Guru
Safety - Hazmat - New Member Engineering Fields - Retired Engineers / Mentors - New Member Engineering Fields - Piping Design Engineering - New Member Hobbies - DIY Welding - New Member Fans of Old Computers - PDP 11 - New Member

Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Stronger Than The Storm
Posts: 2394
Good Answers: 203
#2

Re: Dripwall Delta. Get Seedlings Started Earlier

03/22/2014 8:19 PM

Is the drip wall absolutely necessary? I was involved in the installation of a somewhat similar heating system for half of a 600' greenhouse (hoop style). Owner stated what he wanted done and we worked it out for him. 300' of the upper part of the house had black poly pipe (the type used for lawn sprinklers) installed as one continuous pipe loop. Approx. 1/3 of this was pipe and the rest open for sunlight to pass through. Water was circulated through this, in the sunlight, and then run through similar tubing placed under the dirt floor of the house. It was more than sufficient to heat the seedlings and plants to maturity earlier than every possible previously.

Laborers would water the plants with water that had been heated in the same manner.

The other 300' of the house was the control sample and did not do nearly as good while it was heated with 300,000 or 400,000 btu space heaters, the previous method used for heating all houses. The last I heard the "solar system was still in use.

Good Luck, Old Salt

__________________
Any day on the green side of the grass is a GREAT DAY!, --- me +++++++++. I believe creativity is an inherent part of everyone. --- Kermit T. Frog
Register to Reply
Guru

Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 705
Good Answers: 8
#3
In reply to #2

Re: Dripwall Delta. Get Seedlings Started Earlier

03/24/2014 3:48 AM

I think the advantage of the dripwall is that it is extremely cheap, minimalistic and uses very little energy (less than 1 watt in my proof of concept to collect up to 50 watts of solar heat) and combines heat moving with irrigation of the plants. Even when the sky was cloudy, it was collecting heat. Perhaps the hydronic version could collect a couple of kilowatts from the same 1 watt but I was unwilling to try it in freezing weather. Anyway, it was just a trial run in a small greenhouse..

Register to Reply
Register to Reply 3 comments

Good Answers:

These comments received enough positive votes to make them "good answers".
Copy to Clipboard

Users who posted comments:

gaiatechnician (1); old salt (1); truth is not a compromise (1)

Previous in Forum: New Evidence from Space Supports Stanford Physicist's Theory   Next in Forum: Genetic Mugshot Recreates Faces From Nothing But DNA

Advertisement