"C & M" wrote in message
...
I'm wanting to install a simple solar collector for heating air into my
shop, just as an assist - not full-out heating. Apologies in advance if
this isn't the right forum but couldn't find a NG that seems to fit. I
know
that I saw a slew of these back in the 70's but I'll be hanged if I can
come
up with one now. I was thinking of a flat, baffled collector which would
convect air from inside the shop, to the bottom chamber of the panel while
the top chamber heated up and convected the warm air into the shop. It
would seem logical that the baffle plate should be sheetmetal for quicker
heat-up. The window is only 20" wide so I guess the width of the
collector
is predetermined (or maybe I can make it wider and neck it down to fit the
window - other funtional issues come to mind with that). The installation
was to angle the collector to match your latitude (+/-) and fit the top
with
an extension appropriately angle to bring it into the shop, with diverters
to prevent the heated air from re-entering the collector. So, what's the
consensus of opinion? No fair asking the wife.

A friend of mine sold these in the 70's in Iowa. Took one winter for him to
bail on the idea.
The reason you do not still see them is that they did not work all that
well. His worked well in the day time and turned into a radiator exhausting
the heat from his house at night.