No garden activity area is complete without an outdoor solar shower.  You can make a simple shower with a length of garden pipe, up to a really sophisticated static shower enclosure with a drain, perhaps some decking for comfortable toweling, and screening for privacy.  

Let’s look at a simple outdoor solar shower in a typical backyard, maybe beside a swimming pool or hot tub, both of which could use the same hot water as the shower.

Your primary concern must be proper drainage for the solar heated shower.  In some areas you might be able to have a simple soakaway or take the soiled water to the nearest flower bed.  On the other hand you might need a proper mains drainage system.  You will be responsible for following whatever rules apply to your locality.  

These are the other main points to consider in your solar heated shower design:

Privacy.  Do you need to avoid being overlooked? If yes, then you need to find a secluded spot away from upstairs windows for your solar heated shower.

Mains Water.  You could find that your shower water pressure is affected by its distance from the mains supply. You could boost this by fitting a water storage tank mounted above the height of the shower head.

Sunshine.  The solar collector (hose, cylinder or both) needs good exposure to the sun’s heat.  Enough hot water for the next shower should be available in about 15 minutes or so, but the time taken can be badly affected by shade or poor positioning from direct sunlight.

Usage.  Is the solar heated shower to be used after having a dip in the pool or hot tub?  To cool off after a sunbathe?  Your shower design will depend very much on how you want to use it.

Litter.  Unfortunately a shower pan is a great place for fallen leaves to collect.  A wooden lid is a good idea to cover the shower pan when not being used, and placing the shower well away from trees if possible is also sensible.

Between 9 and 16 square feet is a good size for an outdoor solar shower, and build it on decking about a foot above the ground, to allow the installation of a simple galvanized steel drainage box under the shower to take soiled water away to the soakaway or other drainage system you have provided.

The decking can be extended for 4 or 5 feet at the shower entrance, to allow comfortable drying off without getting feet dirty.  Use 4×4 pressure-treated softwood uprights for the corners of the shower cubicle, joined by side panels made from pretty much anything you like – plywood, clapboard, cedar shingles are some materials of choice.  

You will find the solar heating system very easy to make. It could be as basic as fixing a shower head to 500 feet of flexible pipe coiled in the sun. A more formal arrangement will still involve coils of water pipe mounted in a tray above the shower and exposed to the sun. You can increase the capacity by including an old water tank or cylinder but, if you do this, you will probably need to mount it higher than the shower head – not always an aesthetically pleasing method unless you can somehow conceal it.

In very hot weather you might need to include a mixer system, for ensuring your shower is not too hot for you!

There are many ways to build a solar shower, and we have a highly recommended guide available to help you make one easily and safely.  There are plans, diagrams and clear, step-by-step instructions to guide you through the whole process.

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