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Solar panel mounting (on roof)


Johny London

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I'm getting ready to fit solar panels - starting off with a couple of 150w 'ers. I decided to keep them low and flat as opposed to adjustable, as I'm a single hander and can do without anything else to get the centre line caught in, at the crucial moment.

So, I have seen plastic corners and mid mounts around £30 which seems expensive. I've also seen some metal brackets in a Z fashion with lugs as well that look like they would do a decent job. But then I'm thinking why not use bog standard small brackets (galvanised or ss obviously).

Infact the main thing seems to be how the fixings will connect to the roof. I was planning on sticking them on with silicon or maybe something for the purpose like sikaflex. Then today I saw the high winds in the trees and started thinking maybe I'd be better bolting through the roof but not keen on that for obvious reasons!

I wonder if anyone has a good solution for this? I suppose nuts could be welded in place or indeed the brackets themselves could be welded on, but I don't want to go that rout either - no welding gear, muck up the paint.

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Yes I could drill and tap, but concerned about water ingress, long term rusting etc.

What are pot magnets?

These are what I'm thinking of, they look neat but perhaps no real advantage over a bog standard l shape bracket bolted through to the side of the frame...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Solar-Panel-Z-bracket-Mounting-Mount-Flat-Roof-Wall-Aluminum-Set-4-pcs-BJ-/112366986999?hash=item1a299826f7:g:U2wAAOSwmLlX62VN

Edited by Johny London
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3 hours ago, Johny London said:

Yes I could drill and tap, but concerned about water ingress, long term rusting etc.

What are pot magnets?

These are what I'm thinking of, they look neat but perhaps no real advantage over a bog standard l shape bracket bolted through to the side of the frame...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Solar-Panel-Z-bracket-Mounting-Mount-Flat-Roof-Wall-Aluminum-Set-4-pcs-BJ-/112366986999?hash=item1a299826f7:g:U2wAAOSwmLlX62VN

These still look like they need bolting to the roof, so don’t understand your reluctance to drill and tap through the roof.

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I think (I haven't got the panel yet) that I would Sikaflex battens, say 2x1 to the roof & then use stainless brackets to the battens. Then if I did decide they were in the wrong place I wouldn't have redundant holes in the roof. The battens could be removed at the next paint job.

Steve

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I've decided to go for the metal z brackets I saw. I'm just checking their clearance height to make sure they can deal with the roof curvature, but I have actually seen these on a couple of other boats. They seem good for the money and I've still got time to think about whether it will be threaded holes or stick on.

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Magnets holding mine on too. Modern rare earth magnets are cheap and incredibly strong. Mine haven't budged in the strongest gales. Steel bolts, or steel brackets attached to the aluminium panel frame to give something for the magnets to grip.

Jen

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Just now, Dave Payne said:

A thought, can magnets mess with the electrickery part of a solar panel?

No, solar panels are solid state devices. Now if you waved a copper wire about in front of a magnet you would induce a current in the wire.

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8 minutes ago, Dave Payne said:

How about the cables coming from the panels, if you put one on/near a magent, will it go boom or something?

No, many people successfully use magnets to secure solar panels. 

Mind you, you might find other boats keep hitting you (drawn in by the pull of the magnets) or it may become difficult setting of from piled moorings.:P

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29 minutes ago, cuthound said:

No, many people successfully use magnets to secure solar panels. 

Mind you, you might find other boats keep hitting you (drawn in by the pull of the magnets) or it may become difficult setting of from piled moorings.:P

The only detrimental affect to ours is it causes  compass deviation , so we are sometimes 40 degrees off course. 

Edited by rusty69
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If the solar panels go over a few mushroom vents, would it work to use chain through the vents to the solar panel frames to keep them from blowing away, and then use decking as edging around them to steady the sides? I need to secure my own panels down, and I like the idea of decking edges...to hide all the tat I'm going to store under them :)

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I've seen plenty of decking based solar panel roof boxes - they look good and are obviously useful. But, I'm not too keen because I think that wood left in contact with metal (even painted metal) will cause problems, ingress of moisture, wood rot, rust etc.

Also, in my case the boat is rather tall so I am keen to minimise adding to its height. If I can keep between the mushroom vents and not go higher, I'll be happiest. Will certainly need a second centre line either way - though not till phase II when a second pair of panels will go on.

Plus, I really can't be bothered with all the woodwork.

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they can be a bit imposing, I'm actually thinking of getting rid of mine and lowering it down onto battens.

 

if I could buy again I would go for smaller panels and buy three to run down the centre.

I don't catch my line on it though, only on the mushroom vents.

WP_20170514_11_49_09_Pro_LI.jpg

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