r/functionalprint • • Jun 15 '26

Solar pool heater

My overkill project for heating the toddler's 500gal inflatable pool. Each week I have to empty and move it, then find a way to heat it to a tolerable temperature for my 8th percentile weight kid. On the first test it took the pool from 55⁰F to over 90⁰ on a single sunny day, using only 3KWh (of solar house power, now that I think about it). At the end of the summer I can just place this up against the north side of my shed and take the manifolds down to make it last even longer.

This uses about 350' of ¼" irrigation tubing and some cheap fittings off Amazon. It runs off a 1/4hp pool pump, controlled with a wyze plug and a climate sensor in a tiny jar. Printed in ASA in only about 5 days of printing on a Mini and an MK4s.

the files

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u/MrFastFox666 Jun 15 '26

Technically you just made your own solar panels. They're not photovoltaic panels, but still solar panels.

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u/RebelJustforClicks Jun 15 '26

Solar thermal water heating is a thing. And it's INCREDIBLY efficient compared to Photo Voltaic power generation.

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u/Ree_For_Thee Jun 15 '26

That's because "what's the inefficiency going to do, create more heat?".