Foil?

[opitz]

Just one simple question. What kind of foil I have to use, if I want for heating-up use 300w solid state waterbed heater?
What qualities must that foil have?

[BEB]

are you talking about the foil that goes underneath the heating pads? I was going to use sheet metal, which will also help spread the heat out more.

[opitz]

no, i am talking about the foil that is between water and heating pad. but thank you for that notice about sheet metal. good idea.

[nimrod]

On a typical waterbed, the heater (just a plastic heating pad) lies on the plywood next to the temp probe, a thin vinyl liner goes over that, and then the vinyl waterbed mattress sits right on that. No metal or foil at all. It's about 24" x 12" long and without any heat spreaders or currents it heats the whole king size waterbed just fine. You shouldn't need any foil or metal on the heating pad...

just a fyi...

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"Suntan lotion is not a lubricant!"

[opitz]

if i will not want to use waterbed mattress, what other alternatives can i take into consideration?

[twix elbert]

if i will not want to use waterbed mattress, what other alternatives can i take into consideration?

i'm in the process of building my tank, i'll be using a plywood frame to which two layers of waterproof membrane will be applied. my father is a builder so he'll be doing all the hard work. i hope to use a submersible heater to avoid issues with potential water leaks.

[opitz]

what kind of waterproof membrane you plan to use? do you know about some submersible heater, which is accurate to within .1 degree?

[twix elbert]

i'm not too sure what it's called, often my dad needs to waterproof the floor of a shower so what he does is he gets this waterproof paint and puts on a thick coat, then lays some type of waterproof mesh membrane and another coat of paint. he says that just the paint alone is very effective but that the added mesh makes it unstoppable.

as for heating, i intend to place a waterproof probe inside the tank and have a separate temp controller sitting outside. i think you'd be hard pressed finding a submersible heater to that accuracy but i haven't looked so i really don't know.

good luck!

[opitz]

matter is, that i need waterproof foil, which will not lose attributes by effects of salt solution from one side and waterbed heater (solid state, 350 w) from second side. and i can't use waterbed mattress.

[twix elbert]

i've done more research, there are some good submersible titanium heaters resistant to saltwater corrosion. they're pretty cheap too, there's a 500w heater on www.jehmco.com going for $US40. if electrocution is still a concern maybe you can fit some kind of waterproof 'sock' over the heater to create a barrier between it and the water.

there are many different approaches to take, i haven't finalised my decision just yet but i hope you get some ideas.