Solar Still

This instructable is showing how to make a solar still using mirrors as reflectors.There is a dark bottle with a quark inside a glass jar with a lid. From this bottle there is a copper pipe in a quark going to a 12 ounce beer bottle that the contents are going to drip into. The glass jar with the bottle inside will sit in the frame of mirror to attract more heat.

disclaimer- I am not responsible for what anyone does with this any information on here. read about how solar stilling works before making. You need a permit to distill alcohol. There free to get online. might depend on state.

i used copper pipe

Tools

jig saw/ hand saw

drill

sander

copper pipe cutter

hammer

Supplies

wood for frame

mirrors 1 ft square 3

big glass jar with lid

colored bottle

quark to go in colored bottle

12 ounce beer bottle

quark to go in 12 oz bottle

copper pipe

glue for mirrors

nails

To make the frame I had spare wood around I used. It was a half inch thick, I cut it so that I had 3 pieces about 13 inches long. The mirrors are 1 foot square so the wood has to be big enough for the mirrors to be glued to it. Before nailing the wood I set them up to see how they would look. The 2 side pieces I nailed to the base then nailed these to together. make sure you have straight cuts so it is all square.

I added rain protectant to the wood to have it last longer outside..

Adding the mirrors is pretty straight forward. I used the silicone glue. This is the type that goes in the metal sqeezer that pushes out the silicone. I first glued the base mirror on to the bottom. I set clothes on the mirror and and added weight until it dried. Then I did the same thing with both the side mirror. I turned the side so that it was on the ground when I Glued the sides down.

Adding the bottles is easy you just have to find the right sizes. I used a pickle jar for my main big clear jar. I then found a dark beer bottle that fit inside this jar. I believe it was a 18 ounce bottle or 20 ounce. Once I tested it fit inside i cut out a hole in the top lid for the top of the bottle to poke out the top. The other bottle is a regular high life bottle.

Then lastly add your conditioned copper. Make sure your copper is conditioned. you need clean off the copper with rubbing alcohol and clean it off.

If you make this make sure you do your homework on how stilling spirts work. The mirrors part can also be used for other solar applications.