Homemade Solar Furnace

One way of heating a small space in your home is with the use of a homemade solar furnace. Sure there are solar furnace kits you could order from stores, but making one can save you a lot of money. Best of all, the materials needed for this project might just be lying around somewhere in your home.

What you need is:

• 2”x4” wood
• Plywood
• 50 empty soda cans
• BBQ paint
• An old wet/dry vacuum hose
• A wet/dry vacuum attachment
• Some ¾ inch PVC pipes.

Start off by making a simple box using the 2”x4” and plywood. The box’s dimension will depend on your soda cans. The box must fit five columns of ten empty aluminum cans. Leave at least one to two inches of space at the top to let the air flow out of the cans. The cans will act as your absorbing plate.

Once you’ve assembled the box, use adhesive caulk to keep air from escaping from the box. Then get 45 soda cans and drill a ¾” hole at the bottom of each can. For the last five cans, make the hole at one side. This will serve as the bottom vents of your homemade solar furnace. Then stack the soda cans with adhesive caulk to prevent heat from leaking. Let the adhesive dry, before proceeding to the next step.

When the cans are dry, paint them with the black BBQ paint. This will help the cans absorb the sun’s radiant energy. At the top of the box, drill an outlet hole. The size of the hole will depend on the size of your vacuum hose that will be inserted in it.

At the bottom of the box, attach the wet/dry vacuum attachment to the inlet hole. This will disperse the incoming air evenly. Screw it to the box and seal it with adhesive caulk. Then secure the five columns in your box. To protect your wooden box from the weather, you can apply paint on it. You can use any color you want. Then place a clear Plexiglas cover in front of the box. You can simply caulk it in place.

At this point you’ve already assembled your homemade solar furnace. The next step is to build the stand that will hold it. Take the ¾” PVC pipes and make a simple frame out of it that will be enough to keep the box off the ground and to keep it angled towards the sun.

For more information and photos of a working homemade solar furnace, you can visit Daniel Strohl’s Auto Blogs.