I have a pending project that I could use some help with. I have four solar panels I plan on installing to heat hot water for domestic use. I have made a pair of side arm type heat exchangers, they are 2" stainless tubine with 3/4" copper running through the middle, the stainless has o-rings in the endcaps to allow for expansion and contraction. I am on city water supply. The height to the top of the solar panels will end up being about 26'. I am planning on pumping the domestic water through the exchangers from a water storage tank at city pressure in a circulation loop. Questions: Do I need an expansion tank on the domestic water side of the system? Also what pressure should I run the solar fluid loop at? And how do I determine the size of the pressure tank? What is the best place to install flowmeters (how far away from the pumps)? And where is the best place and best type of valve to install to control flow(I'm thinking globel valve)? I have been reading most of the post on iburncorn.com and I have seen a number of post from people on here that seem to be quite knowledgable on pressurized hydro systems. Thanks in advance. I know this is only the begining and more questions and answers will follow.

We are 20 miles north of Madison, Wi most crops are in the ground now. We got ours i the ground the weekend before Memorial day. Just got done spraying corn. Sold our hay off the field the neighbor had a tough time chopping this week due to rain. First year we didn't fill our own silo(no more cows to milk either) It was nice to spend Memorial Day weekend with my kids. Last week I went to chicago and it looked like all crops were in the gound down that way as well.

I am a public employee a master mechanic for a local county. On Feb 1-2 we had 8 inches of snow with 35-40 mph winds. I was asked to work into the night in case of emergency I spent the 8 hours of the worst weather I have ever seen out in the storm pulling fire trucks and ambulances out of the snow. My reward a cold that stayed for 6 weeks and kept me out of work for 3 days(union contract says after 3 days you need a dr excuse so still sick I went back to work with a 101 fever)the rest of my reward was to be insulted every place I went by the very people I felt I was helping. I know for a fact I make less than private sector. How do I know this the man that works next to me took a $4.00 per hour cut to come to the county. Why because he wanted better retirement and better health ins. If you want to raid my retirement by making me pay for it and not giing me options on investments. I will go back to the private sector and use the added wages to fund my own retirement. That should work for every one except the guy with the heartattack!!! I know what your thinking what guy with the heartattack the one in the ambulance I pulled out of the ditch. Your welcome.

hmve yes those bags sound like they would work for what I'm planning. Let me know about price and shipping. (my zipcode is 53960) Sting the reason I have concerns is the way I've heard pellets react to humidity changes. I did not want to complicate the process any more than it is by introducing more possiblities for failure. First I have to build a pellet mill, then I have to find a hammer mill mixer, then I have to find something to make pellets out of, then I have to figure out a recipe, then figure out the process, then figure out a storage plan, all while bulding and tweaking the equip. I am trying to eliminate any areas that make couse error (I think I can screw this up without having storage issues). Anybody with advice please feel free to chime in anyone anyone Buehler Buehler Buehler.....

I understand what sting is saying about storing in a dry bin. But I do not do that with my corn at the end of the fall is when I shell out enough corn for the winter then I store it in an open gravity box in a shed on the farm. Throughout the winter when it warms enough to thaw outside and the humidity rises my corn takes on moisture and I don't think pellets will react well to that. Can you hear Sean Connery "be careful something in here don't react well to bullets" great line. hmve how big are your bags and how did they cover the pellets?
Thanks
Tom

When my son was three years old I was left in charge for the afternoon and I fell asleep. Long story short if you fall asleep watching football on a Sat. afternoon carb cleaner does take magic marker off of most refrigerators. lesson learned!!!!

With the price of corn knocking on $7.00. I'm looking into making pellets and storing them. What I'm looking for are the large heavy duty plastic bags that fit the pallet sized bulk bins. Not the larger ibc totes. The reason is I'm thinking of making pellets in the summer and storing them until winter. I'm conserned about the pellets taking on moisture and being ruined. Many years ago I drove truck for a company that hauled alot of product for canning companies and I saw these large bags used in the bins to haul cabbage for kraut.
Thanks Tom

I've been reading along and I see both sides to this backup plan thinking. But I'm going to side with sting i'd just get a genset. If you want to feel better about the enviroment buy a used one a gov't auction and your still recycling. I have a slightly related question how big is the exchanger on the boiler your trying to get fixed. Just curious thinking about building something like that and that looks about the size I was thinking. My corn burner is set to hook up to my genset if we loose power just throw the cord through the hole we use to suck the corn in and as Jim Carey said "if you want to start me up just set the choke and pull the rope"

Just fired it up for the year. If I start before it gets cold my wife complains it's to hot. I always tell her take something off. It doesn't work. My furnace is a hot air unit, top feed burner pot, I have to change out the burner pot every night with a clean one. I'd like to change that. It sounds like you setup cleans itself. I like that idea. I worked on a selfcleaning pot design last year, something on the idea of a Maxium but I gave up when it got cold and went back to the old tried and true. It is in my basement and hooked up to my regular forced air system. I'm thinking about remodeling my basement, if I do I'll pour a couple inches over the existing floor and put in radiant tubes. Then when I add onto my garage I wanted to build a hot water system for the garage and build a basement under the garage. You talked about a PLC I haven't any experience with those but have toyed with the idea. Mine is a series of relays and fan controls. When the t-stat calls for heat it turns the auger and draft blower on, until the t-stat is satisfied. The large air circulation fan runs on it's own fan control independant of everything else. When the t-stat is satisfied and heat is not needed it drops into idle mode and starts the auger and draft blower intermitently ( on for 2min, off for 3 min right now). I have a small timing belt running the auger with a set of small gears so I can adjust the speed if I want. I have it set so it runs well and now I don't adjust or change to much but the first winter was quit an experience. I think my father and I carried it out of the basement and back to the shop for more welding 4 times. Alot of work but I have the corn handling system and furnace working pretty good now. I haven't had time to find pics. yet. Can I get a primer on loading pics. to this forum. Talk slow I'm better with a welder, torch, and lathe than a one of these fancy picture typewriter Thingys that lets you talk to folks all around the whole great big world. shucks golly!!!

Tom

Did someone say homemade. Yes, burning on the fourth year. I have pic. on the computer somewhere. I try to dig them up so you can see the design. Does anyone know if I can upload Solidworks files, as I made alot of cad plans afterwards. I was messaging with a gent. in MN who also built his own. But his was a hot water system. When I put mine together there was about 10 guys in the area toying around I think the rest gave it up last year whne corn hit $3.00. I 've been thinking about building a pellet mill and changing over.