OT, Insulating copper pipes on my shop heating solar collector

[gustafson]

McMaster-Carr

 

[Rudd]

There are products made for just this - looks like Graingers carries it too. Search "pipe insulation jacketing"

Aluminum Jacket for Pipe Insulation - Buy Insulation Products

 

[metalmagpie]

Nobody lags pipes like the shipbuilding industry. Think marine..

 

[DDoug]

Or purpose made material.
stainless steel solar piping | solar line sets

Yes, I can see that PEX is so terribly hard to install.

Nothing like throwing money at a job.....

 

[steve45]

Yes, we have UV here in the PNW. UV gets absorbed by the atmosphere a lot. That is why when the sun is overhead one has to be careful and observe sunscreen and hats. As the sun sets though, the UV transmission through the atmosphere is nil. A good thing to remember is that when the sun is below 45 degrees, there is almost no UV getting to you.

I was just funnin' you. We've consistently got about the highest UV index in the country here in west Texas. It ruins just about everything.

 

[MT6]

I tried the black foam pipe insulation too and found that uv eats it up. I bought a number of solar panels off craigs list and they came with a bunch of higher quality foam. When I installed the panels on my shop I did a spiral wrap using 2" wide aluminum tape. Time will tell how well it will hold up but the stuff I did 2 years ago still looks like new.

 

[deltap]

Google "pipe insulation mastic". You will see a brushable latex based product widely used in the indsutry.

 

[Miguels244]

Yes, I can see that PEX is so terribly hard to install.

Nothing like throwing money at a job.....

PEX is not insulated.
Nothing like using the correct material for the job.


Or you can hack something together.

 

[dcsipo]

Sheesh! Go over to your local Big Box and compare that with ignorant guttering prices.

yeah, that is the cheap way . This stuff can be installed after everything is in place, not super expensive, but you are right, more than alu gutter.


dee
;-D

 

[countryboy1966]

Thermal conduction from moisture is your enemy in this situation. Moisture in contact with the outside of a pex line can rob serious BTUs.

I would go with a Pex solution as suggested previously that is then encased in closed cell spray foam that has direct contact with the pex. Exactly like what is used for piping pex lines underground to a wood boiler or gasifier.

Can be purchased by the foot from hydronic heating outfits, ebay etc. Might even find a left over length on the cheap.

 

[dsergison]

That silver roof tar sounds good but messy. Sheet metal, while being the way the pro's do it, would take me days. It is not just a straight run but a manifold. Is there a source for cotton 2" wide tape and what is it called?

2" cotton tape is called gauze bandage. should soak and hold paint very well.