DIY inline heater

red devil

red devil

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Jan 7, 2003
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Shenzhen, China
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I am trying to draw up plans for an inline water heater. It is pretty easy to get a slighly larger diameter pvc pipe to accomodate the size of the heater but I am struggling now with how to put a hole in the pipe to pass the wire through so that I can plug the heater in. Any ideas?
 
I wouldn't trust just silicone to hold the pressure.
 
NO

I forget who makes the darn things now, but you can buy electrical compression fittings that are large enough to slide a heater into.

they are meant for putting a cable into a panel or something, but basically you would screw it into your PVC end cap, and the heater would slide right into, then you simply twist the compression fitting to secure it water tight around the heater.

they are made of plastic, and are similar to this.... but i cant remember the freakin name.

http://www.riverelectricandsupply.com/stlcompressioncouplings
 
FOUND THEM!!!!

This is EXACTLY what you need.
I seen another project for an inline heater somewhere, and these are the fittings the guy used to hold his heater in place.

look around the site a bit, there might be better ones.... but i think this one is what you need.
http://www.heyco.com/pages/products/section_1/1-01.html
 
DarkSoul said:
FOUND THEM!!!!

This is EXACTLY what you need.
I seen another project for an inline heater somewhere, and these are the fittings the guy used to hold his heater in place.

look around the site a bit, there might be better ones.... but i think this one is what you need.
http://www.heyco.com/pages/products/section_1/1-01.html
Click to expand...

That will only work if he is using one with perfectly round cable. Also, if you are advocating that he uses a large diameter fitting to seal the glass tube of a heater in place, that may work, but I'd worry that the heater's glass tube wasn't up to having the pressure of a compression fitting around it.
 
inline heater

As for the cord, I would use epoxy because it will handle the pressure and when the cord is moved around it wont leak like silicone would. And as for the pressure fitting I think that it goes around the pipe that the glass tube is in?
 
wackydan said:
That will only work if he is using one with perfectly round cable. Also, if you are advocating that he uses a large diameter fitting to seal the glass tube of a heater in place, that may work, but I'd worry that the heater's glass tube wasn't up to having the pressure of a compression fitting around it.
Click to expand...

it isnt for the cord, it is for the heater tube to slide into, and the glass will be fine. it doesnt need to be cranked tight to have a good seal, not only that, it isnt under any drastic amount of pressure anyway.

they will hold the heater snugly in place, without damage so long as it isn't too tight.


I read an entire article by someone who made an inline heater using these exact fittings, and he put the heater glass into the fitting. it worked fine according to the article.... I just cant find the article
 
Thanks! Darksoul I am looking at the webpage you suggested and trying to visualize how that will work. My first concern is that it may be rather expensive. After the cost reaches a point I could just go ahead and get a "hydrant" if they are still made which would take care of the issue. My original design had the heater completely inside the pvc. Do you think there is much benefit to using this kind of heater setup vs. putting the heater in the sump?
 
One of the advantages of the inline heater, is it's removal from the main tank so you have a more natural look without the supporting equipmqnt being seen. If your tank has a sump, just put the heater in there as is.
 
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