Trying to find super cheap way to collect solar

[buzneg]

Solar powerd rockets, great idea. Solar powered turbines too. Someone on another forum has figured out that CO2 gas is the best to use, after looking at ammonia and hydrogen.

The biggest problem that I'm seeing is that reflective material, or lenses have to use tracking systems to work fully. Just laying out a "green house type" is very cheap but doesn't heat the air/water very much, and loses heat because of the larger area. I guess it's a matter of insulation. If one square meter of "greenhouse" is perfectly insulated then it will be as good as 1 square meter of lens focusing on a small spot. As long as Black absorbs different quanaties of light the same... more effort will have to be put into making it look dark inside the greenhouse, because the greenhouse has more area for the light to excape. (if you don't see light then the heat is not excapping, probably a high serfice area black matterial would work best, black plastic actaully does reflect light.)

here's something that utilizes the greenhouse and the reflective methods.
http://www.sunoven.com/

solar walls seem very worth while.
http://www.retscreen.net/ang/video.php

http://www.steorn.com/forum/search.php?PostBackAction=Search&Keywords=solar&Type=Topics&btnSubmit=Search

[buzneg]

http://www.wsetech.com/waterheaters.php?gclid=CLTOhffu45cCFQ2LDQodA2PWCQ

http://www.wsetech.com/waterheatersWSE47.php

http://www.apricus.com/html/evacuated_tubes.htm

insulation by vaccum.

[triffid]

I think all the ideas presented here are good ones.We as a nation need to get hellbent on using more solar power.Its out there anyway.Even moonlight can be collected.Maybe no heat from moonlight since ir travels in straight lines and moonlight is reflected light.So maybe we can get electricity from moonlight if nothing else.Triffid

[Artic_Knight]

there is a how to on the internet for a cheap solar collector, use the perferated plastic sheets basically from the side they have long hollow tubes but from the front its a solid sheet of plastic, this combined with some pvc pipe and special glue can make a excellent hot water heater of 30-40% there are many ways to get this plastic. often it is used for the "vote this senetor" signs on the side of the road. it doesnt have a fantastic life span as it does get brittle after some years so keep it in a area that if it leaks there will be no water damage.

[buzneg]

I think vaccum insulated windows will be a big heat saver. If it's cold where you are just feel under your windows, and compiar that to the walls

http://www.goodcleantech.com/2008/03/heatsaving_vacuum_insulated_wi.php

http://greenbuildingelements.com/2008/03/17/super-insulating-vacuum-glass/

Polycarbonate just over a $1 per sq foot?
http://www.builditsolar.com/Experimental/PEXCollector/PEXCollector.htm