Refurbishing old solar hot water panels

Daox · 05-06-20, 11:46 AM

Its been quite some time, but years ago I got 10 solar hot water panels from BenNelson. They had been sitting for quite some time with the glass panels off and need some work. I started the project, but stopped years ago. Now, I am coming back to it and looking to finish it this summer! Thanks Menaus2 for some motivational work on your own solar setup!

Last I left them I had pressure tested 3 of the panels. I know at least one of the panels has a seam split on one of the risers that will need to be repaired.

So, yesterday I took a look at the remaining 7 panels. I cleaned them out quickly and inspected and disassembled the few that hadn't been disassembled. They'll need to be pressure tested.

My current question for you guys is how would you connect these solar panels? The guys that took down the panels just used a sawzall and lopped off the header pipes so they barely extend beyond the sheet aluminum case. I had planned on using PEX tubing between them. This seemed like a nice idea because it was simple, but I'm a bit worried about overheating the PEX and that causing leaks. Do you guys have any suggestions?

05-06-20, 11:46 AM	#1
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Refurbishing old solar hot water panels Its been quite some time, but years ago I got 10 solar hot water panels from BenNelson. They had been sitting for quite some time with the glass panels off and need some work. I started the project, but stopped years ago. Now, I am coming back to it and looking to finish it this summer! Thanks Menaus2 for some motivational work on your own solar setup! Last I left them I had pressure tested 3 of the panels. I know at least one of the panels has a seam split on one of the risers that will need to be repaired. So, yesterday I took a look at the remaining 7 panels. I cleaned them out quickly and inspected and disassembled the few that hadn't been disassembled. They'll need to be pressure tested. My current question for you guys is how would you connect these solar panels? The guys that took down the panels just used a sawzall and lopped off the header pipes so they barely extend beyond the sheet aluminum case. I had planned on using PEX tubing between them. This seemed like a nice idea because it was simple, but I'm a bit worried about overheating the PEX and that causing leaks. Do you guys have any suggestions? Attached Thumbnails __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.