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An outdoor shower in a summer cottage is considered building number 2, since the outdoor toilet is the first in importance. At first glance, this simple structure does not have anything complicated, but such a trifle as choosing and installing a plastic shower container in the country will bring a lot of trouble. How to deal with all these nuances on our own, we will now try to figure it out.
With or without heating
Before choosing a shower tank for a country house, you need to decide on its functionality. The comfort of bathing depends on whether this plastic container is equipped with heating. Two types of tanks are used on country shower houses:
- Multifunctional and convenient to use is the heated shower tankpowered by electricity. Of course, even without connecting to electricity, this tank can be used, but this is the comfort of taking water procedures. The fact is that a heating element is installed inside the plastic container – a heating element. If the sun has not had time to heat the water, this problem can be easily solved with the help of electricity. It is convenient to install a heated tank if the shower will be used in early spring and late autumn. On hot summer days, the water inside the tank will heat up from the sun, so heating is simply not turned on during this period.
- Plastic tank without heating – this is an ordinary container, for example, a barrel installed on the roof of a shower house. The water in the tank is heated by the sun. That is, in cloudy and rainy weather, you can only take a refreshing shower or even refuse to swim. It is appropriate to install unheated tanks if the cottage is visited very rarely, and then only in summer.
The main difference between these containers is only the installed heating element. The shape, volume, and color of the product can be very different. It is important that any selected tank has a wide mouth, convenient for pouring water and is securely fixed on the roof of the shower house.
Design features of plastic shower tanks
Plastic shower tanks in the country are especially popular with consumers for several reasons;
- For the manufacture of tanks, a special plastic composition is used, which increases the service life of the product up to 30–50 years. At the same time, plastic tanks for an outdoor shower are distinguished by moderate cost, light weight and ease of installation.
- Flat, square-shaped tanks ideally cover outdoor showers instead of a roof. It is enough to assemble the shower box, and fix the tank on top instead of the roof.
- In the manufacture of shower tanks, many manufacturers use food-grade polyethylene that does not decompose from exposure to UV rays. Environmentally friendly material ensures the safety of water even during long-term storage. Plastic under any conditions does not lend itself to corrosion, which cannot be said about metal.
When choosing a plastic container, you need to know that tanks without electric heating are most often produced in volumes from 100 to 200 liters. Round heated containers in the form of a barrel are made with a volume of 50 to 130 liters of water. Heated flat tanks are usually designed for 200 liters of liquid. In any design, the water is filled with buckets through a wide neck or with a pump.
How to “tune” a regular tank is described in this video:
Tanks intended for installation on a shower are usually produced from solid polyethylene. However, there are universal models made of elastic polymer. Such containers are designed to store a large supply of water. They are installed in the country for a shower and drip irrigation. A similar container of water resembles a whipped pillow. On the walls there are two fittings for pumping and draining water. The lid is equipped with a special mechanism that allows oxygen to penetrate. That is, breathing occurs. If the shower or drip irrigation is not used for a long time, the water in the container does not stagnate.
An elastic container can hold from 200 to 350 liters of water, and this, despite the fact that in the empty state the product is adjusted according to the principle of an air mattress. Can you imagine a 350 liter barrel that fits in a travel bag? This one will fit. The elastic polymer has increased strength, does not lose its properties during heating, and restores its shape after filling the tank with water.
Features of the device of a plastic tank with heating
If you decide to build a shower for a heated cottage, then you can go in two ways: buy a ready-made tank with a heating element or install a heating element in a barrel yourself.
In the first case, the arrangement of the shower will cost more, but there is a big benefit in this. Factory-made tanks, in addition to the heating element, are equipped with additional devices. This can be a water temperature sensor, overheating protection, a thermostat, etc. Even portable tanks with a shower and heating are sold. A tank filled with sensors will cost more, but the owner will not worry about a burnt heating element, boiled water or a melted tank. The system works on the principle of an electric boiler. It is enough to set the desired water temperature, and the automation will maintain it constantly.
In the second case, in the presence of a conventional capacity, the owner spends on the purchase of a heating element. The primitive device will work like a boiler. The temperature of the water must be constantly monitored. Left unattended, the included heating will end with boiling water, and even melting the tank.
Any design of a heated container requires the presence of water. The included heating element in an empty tank will burn out in a couple of minutes.
All heated plastic tanks are equipped with a heating element with a power of 1 to 2 kW. This is enough to heat water up to 200 liters. For the heater to work, you will need to lay an electrical cable and connect it through the machine after the electric meter. The rate of water heating depends on its volume, the power of the heating element and the outdoor temperature. In the cold season, the thin walls of the container are not able to retain heat. Large losses occur, which is accompanied by an increase in the time of heating water and an extra consumption of electricity.
Basic requirements for a container for a country shower
We have already talked about the color of the tank. Dark walls attract heat better and prevent water from blooming. But the volume of the product depends on the number of people living in the country. Although usually shower houses are installed in compact dimensions, it is very dangerous to install a tank with a capacity of 200 or 300 liters on the roof. Cabin racks simply can not withstand a large mass of water. It is optimal to install a tank for 1 liters of water on a house measuring 1,2×100 m. It will be enough for bathing five family members.
You can fill the container with water manually, from a water pipe or a well. In the first case, there should always be a ladder near the shower. The wider the mouth of the tank, the easier it will be to fill the water.
When pumping water from a well, you need a pump. A signal tube is removed from the top of the tank. The flow of water from it lets the owner know that it is time to turn off the pump. In addition, the signal tube prevents the tank from bursting due to excess water pressure.
It is most convenient to fill the container from the water supply. If you install a plumbing valve inside, water will automatically be added as it is consumed. The principle of operation is like in a toilet bowl. A signal tube will not hurt here either. All of a sudden the valve won’t work.
Sometimes summer residents resort to simple tricks to ensure quick heating of the water and reduce heat loss:
- Vegetable growers know how a greenhouse keeps warm in a garden with seedlings. A similar cover made of film or polycarbonate can be built on the roof of the shower, and a container of water can be placed inside. The greenhouse will protect the tank from the cold wind, and increase the heating of the water by 8оC.
- The north side of the container is protected by any foil material with a mirror finish.
- If you install an intake pipe inside the upper part of the tank, then the warm water from above will be the first to enter the shower.
Any invention for keeping water warm is acceptable. The main thing is that they are safe for humans. If desired, water can be heated with an ordinary boiler, but this does not always lead to good results.
Independent production of a plastic tank for a country shower
When the household already has a plastic container, such as a barrel, it can be adapted to a shower instead of a tank. However, one must be prepared for the fact that it will have to be removed for the winter and put into a barn for storage. Such barrels are not intended for outdoor installation and will crack in the cold.
A barrel for a shower in a country house, designed for bulk products, is optimally suited. It has a wide mouth with a lid, through which it is convenient to pour water. Re-equipment of the barrel begins with a tie-in pipe for a watering can:
- A hole with a diameter of 15 mm is drilled in the center of the bottom of the barrel. Next, a piece is cut from the stainless pipe so that its length is enough to pass through the roof of the shower house and exit 150 mm below the ceiling.
- Threads are cut at both ends of the cut pipe. If there is no threading tool at home, you will have to contact a turner or look for a ready-made pipe on the market.
- With the help of washers and nuts, one end of the pipe is fixed in the hole of the barrel, after which it is installed on the roof. Under the ceiling, a protruding second end of the threaded pipe turned out. A ball valve is screwed onto it and, using a threaded adapter, a conventional watering can nozzle.
- On the roof, the barrel must be well strengthened. You can use metal strips or other devices that are at hand.
- Barrels for bulk products are usually produced in white. For a shower, this option is not suitable, and the walls will have to be painted black. It is important that the paint contains no solvents or other additives that can melt the plastic.
On this, a homemade shower container is ready. It remains to fill in the water, wait for it to heat up from the sun and you can swim.
The video shows a tank for a country shower:
Plastic tanks are the ideal solution for arranging a country shower. A more reliable alternative can only be a stainless steel container, but at current prices it will cost the summer resident very much.