In most cases, traditional types of energy carriers are used for heat supply: firewood, coal, gas, electricity, diesel fuel. However, along with them, other sources of thermal energy have found application - solar radiation and geothermal systems. How to make alternative heating of a private house with your own hands and what should be taken into account when picking and drawing up an installation diagram?
Features of alternative home heating
For the operation of any heat supply, a source of thermal energy is required. To do this, use all types of fuel. But alternative heating of a country house works on a different principle. Heating of the coolant occurs due to exposure to solar energy or temperature differences in the soil.
At first glance, alternative forms of heating a private house are the most effective and economical in financial terms. Their efficiency is rarely below 98%. However, in fact, the use of alternative energy sources is fraught with the following difficulties:
- Dependence on weather factors. This is especially true for solar collectors;
- Relatively low power. This must be taken into account if alternative heating with one's own hands will be the only source of heat;
- High cost of equipment;
- The complexity of installation and further maintenance.
Why, given these factors, do alternative heating do it yourself? In addition to them, one should take into account the main positive point - low maintenance costs. In fact, they are expressed only in the energy consumption necessary for the operation of pumping equipment and electronic control units.
The feasibility of installing alternative heating of a private house with your own hands should be calculated first. For this, a number of important factors inherent in each alternative heat supply system should be taken into account. Therefore, before purchasing and installing equipment, it is recommended that you carefully familiarize yourself with the features of its operation and technical specifications.
Alternative methods of heating the cottage can be used in conjunction with traditional systems. This will reduce ongoing system maintenance costs.
Cottage auxiliary heat supply schemes
What alternative heating methods for a private house are best suited for a particular building? Considering the possibility of installing new equipment for heat supply, a number of factors should be taken into account.
The main ones are the characteristics of the source of thermal energy in a particular region. Currently, 2 types of alternative methods of heating a house are widespread:
- Geothermal. It works due to the temperature difference between the layers of soil - alternative heating of a private house with a heat pump. Depends on the degree of freezing, soil composition, as well as the total area of the land. The latter affects the choice of installation scheme;
- Heliosystem. Heating of the heat carrier occurs due to solar energy. Such a technology will be effective only in regions where there are a large number of sunny days per year, and the temperature in winter does not drop below -7 ° С. In most cases, solar systems are used not as an alternative method of heating a house, but for hot water supply.
In addition to these systems, there are a number of new ones that cannot be fully attributed to low-budget ones.First of all, these are alternative heating boilers operating on the principle of electrode or induction heating of the coolant.
For the operation of any type of alternative heating of a country house, uninterrupted power supply will be required. Therefore, it is recommended to understaff the system with electricity generators.
Geothermal home heating
The basis of the work of this type of alternative heating of a private house is an increase in the temperature in the soil as it deepens. On average, growth is about 2.5-3 ° C for every 100 m. At first glance, this will not be enough for heating. For the practical use of this effect, you will need special equipment - a heat pump.
The principle of its operation is the practical application of the effect of increasing the temperature of the refrigerant with increasing pressure. For this, the following elements should be part of the alternative heating of a private house with a heat pump:
- Primary circuit. It is located underground or water. It is important that the ambient temperature is not lower than + 8 ° C;
- Inner contour. It is located directly in the heat pump and is connected to the primary using a heat exchanger. It contains gaseous refrigerant, which is heated from the coolant. Subsequently, with the help of the compressor, the refrigerant is compressed and its temperature is increased to + 55 ° C;
- Secondary. It is designed to transfer heat from the refrigerant to the coolant flowing in the domestic heating systems of the house.
In practice, when designing alternative heating of a private house with their own hands, they are faced with the problem of arranging the primary circuit. The volume of coolant in it, as well as the degree of heating must correspond to the technical characteristics of the heat pump. To do this, you can apply several methods of mounting the primary circuit:
- Vertical using wells. When arranging alternative heating with one's own hands on a personal plot, a drilling site is selected taking into account the composition of the soil. The depth of the well can be up to 50 m. The circuits with primary coolant are lowered into it;
- Horizontal. Less effective, since the temperature difference between the layers of soil will be minimal. In some cases, you can use ponds.
It is best to use polymer pipelines as highways. They have an affordable price, which will affect the cost of this alternative method of heating a cottage. Most of the costs will be the purchase of a heat pump.
Making it yourself for this alternative way of heating a private house will be very problematic. The difficulty lies in calculating the power of the compressor, the circulation pump, as well as the manufacture of the internal circuit in which the refrigerant is located.
| Model | power, kWt | Cost, rub. |
| GeoTERM VWS 101/2 | 10 | 460160 |
| Logatherm wps 17 | 17 | 825520 |
| Viessmann Vitacal 300-G BW 301.A17 | 17 | 542800 |
You can purchase similar installations for alternative heat supply of a country-house of domestic production. But their quality and performance leave much to be desired.
The installation of a heat pump for alternative heating of a private house is best done in the basement of the building. In this way, unnecessary heat loss can be avoided.
Installation of solar heating systems
It is much easier to make alternative heating of a private house on your own using the energy of the sun. To do this, you need to install a special heating element on the roof of the building.
Its design is a network of vacuum tubes through which the coolant flows. They are protected from negative temperatures by a transparent sheet. After heating in the sun, water or antifreeze starts moving towards the heat exchanger in the heat accumulator.
In practice, this do-it-yourself alternative heating is highly dependent on current weather conditions. So, with a rated power of 600 W / m² in sunny weather, such heat transfer deteriorations occur:
- White clouds in the sky - 200-100 W / m²;
- Dark gray or gray cloud cover - 50-70 200-100 W / m².
Such conditions will not allow considering solar systems as the basis for an alternative type of heating of a private cottage. Therefore, they are installed as auxiliary, or to provide hot water in the summer.
| Component | Appointment | Cost, rub. |
| SVK-Nano 30 | Vacuum manifold, 1.8 kW / h | 45160 |
| SR868C8 | Controller | 6520 |
| TRM-300 | Thermal battery, 300 l. | 44580 |
In addition to these components, when choosing this method of alternative heating of the cottage, it is necessary to install a pumping system. Its power depends on the volume of the coolant and the duration of the line.
During installation of the solar system, the angle of inclination of the panel must be observed. It depends on the specific model, its area and the design of the pipes.
Alternative heating
Having chosen the optimal alternative heating scheme for a private house, you can proceed with its installation. To do this, it is best to use the services of specialized companies. Moreover, in many cases, the equipment warranty extends only if its installation was carried out by representatives of the selling organization.
Installing alternative heating boilers is much easier. They are mounted in an existing piping system. However, for proper operation, you should select the appropriate heat carrier (electrode boilers) and set the mode of its heating.
In general, the installation technology largely depends on the type of alternative heat supply and the specific model of the heating installation. But besides this, you need to consider such factors:
- Minimization of heat loss through the use of modern thermal insulation materials. This is especially true for geothermal heating;
- Mandatory availability of uninterruptible power supply (diesel or gasoline generator), as well as a current stabilizer;
- Installation of automated control of the heating system.
Following these simple tips and carefully studying the technical characteristics of alternative heat supply, you can significantly save on costs.
In the video you can see an example of making a solar system with your own hands:
