How about a solar car port on a budget?

[Crossy]

It is certainly going to need a good deal more heatsink to maintain the passive cooling and the IP65 (weatherproof) rating.

 

Let's see how it behaves with a lump of aluminium on the hot side, who knows the manufacturer may even modify the design (they have asked for feedback).

 

[JAS21]

1 hour ago, Crossy said:

 

and they are stupidly small ????

 

 Hi Crossy,

 

Sorry you’re having problems, I’ll try and get over this weekend and see if I can give you a few pointers from an engineering perspective.

 

Else I might just come and exercise my post operative arm on your 500 g   Cans of Leo..........????..

[Crossy]

11 minutes ago, JAS21 said:

 Hi Crossy,

Sorry you’re having problems, I’ll try and get over this weekend and see if I can give you a few pointers from an engineering perspective.

Else I might just come and exercise my post operative arm on your 500 g   Cans of Leo..........????..

 

You could also return the thingies you borrowed, put them in the car now so you don't forget them, again ????

 

Do I have to buy Leo, we usually have Elephant Pee ????

 

[Chazar]

On 9/1/2019 at 1:36 PM, Crossy said:

Moving right along we start screwing the standoff pieces into position. If this was the house roof I'd put a good splodge of silicon under the part before bolting down, I didn't bother, the odd leak in the car-port won't hurt.

 

 

And the rails get screwed to the stand-offs.

 

Blimey I stuck up a roof  like that using those tiles and I wouldnt tread on the things, I am 76kilo  though so maybe  that guys 50 or  so but they are really easy to break, unless hes on some boarding but even then risk of cracks is high?

[JAS21]

15 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

You could also return the thingies you borrowed, put them in the car now so you don't forget them, again ????

 

Do I have to buy Leo, we usually have Elephant Pee ????

 

????

[Crossy]

23 minutes ago, Chazar said:

Blimey I stuck up a roof  like that using those tiles and I wouldnt tread on the things, I am 76kilo  though so maybe  that guys 50 or  so but they are really easy to break, unless hes on some boarding but even then risk of cracks is high?

 

Those cheap (IIRC 30 Baht each) tiles are actually pretty tough, so long as you step on the areas with the structure underneath no issue. He did use boards later in the day, but only because the roof was burning his bare feet

[carlyai]

3 hours ago, Crossy said:

From Kaideng support regarding inverter temperature.

 

Quote

Good day，
 
It is normal for the surface temperature to exceed 60°. Our maximum surface temperature can reach 70°. If it exceeds 75°, it will have a protection mechanism. This is called over-temperature protection.
 
If you can install a cooling fan for it, this is a very good idea, because we are constantly improving the cooling system of the inverter. Because it needs to be waterproof, it is impossible to install a cooling fan, and it can only rely on the heat dissipation of the body. Features.
 
We are constantly improving. If you have good suggestions, you can tell me that we will accept it. Thank you.
 
Best regards
Anson Guo

 
I hooked up a 100mm 12V fan as a test measure and it reduced the maximum temperature to below 60C. I'll do the job properly at the weekend.
 
I've also got some aluminium heatsink extrusions on order to test as additional passive cooling.
 

 

It will be interesting to see if the heat sinks do anything much at all.

Sent from my SM-J700F using Tapatalk
 

[Muhendis]

4 hours ago, Crossy said:

 

I know, but there's no real way to attach anything without taking the beast apart which I want to avoid at present (warranty and all that jazz).

You could try some nice big jubilee clips or fabricate a clamp with two bits of steel and some long bolts. Or wind some galvanised iron wire around it........

[sfokevin]

4 hours ago, Crossy said:

 

I know, but there's no real way to attach anything without taking the beast apart which I want to avoid at present (warranty and all that jazz).

Do some thermal tape along two edges to adhere the sink and thermal paste in the middle of the sink 

[007 RED]

@Crossy.... Many thanks for a really helpful guide to DIY installation of a solar energy system.  I have been considering having solar system installed for some time but have been put off by the extremely high cost quoted by my local PEA and a few installers, for example:  www.solarshop-th.com

 

Having followed your project, and being a reasonable DIY merchant, I feel confident that a similar project on our car port would be well within my capabilities.  The car port roof is North/South facing so the South slope (left) gets the sun most of the day.  As seen from the photo below, the apex of the roof is quite high (about 6 meters).

 

 

The one concern that I have is keeping the panels clean in order to ensure their maximum efficiency.  Unfortunately there is a factory not far from our house which produces instant coffee and as part of the roasting/grinding processes we suffer from fine particles of coffee powder landing everywhere when the wind is in the right (wrong) direction.

 

During the rainy season I would assume that the panels would become self cleaning, but in the dry season I would assume that they are going to need a wash every week in order to get rid of the coffee dust particles.  As I'm 70+, and still fairly fit, getting up a ladder is not currently a problem but no doubt as time goes by there will come a time when such a task will become difficult, and Mrs MoneyBaht does not like/do heights.

 

To overcome this potential problem has anyone any ideas on how to keep the panels clean?  I was thinking would it be practical and effective to fit a garden drip/spray watering system that might self irrigate/wash the panels.  Any practical suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

 

[Muhendis]

1 hour ago, 007 RED said:

To overcome this potential problem has anyone any ideas on how to keep the panels clean?  I was thinking would it be practical and effective to fit a garden drip/spray watering system that might self irrigate/wash the panels.  Any practical suggestions would be much appreciated.

An idea which I am assured works well is to arrange a watering system to pump water from a tank onto the top of each panel and collect it in a gutter when it reaches the bottom. The water is then circulated back into the tank. This serves three purposes:

1. The panel is kept clean.
2. The panel is kept cool.
3. You get some free warm/hot water.

I have not tried this myself but it was done in Australia by a TV contributor by the name of Jingjoe. It is on my to do list.

By the way I like the angle of your car port roof. It looks optimum to me.

[johng]

A spray bar system could work to keep the panels clean also it could keep them cool and so provide more power output...it could also be self powered as in when the panels make electricity some can be diverted to a water pump with closed loop water supply.

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, Muhendis said:

An idea which I am assured works well is to arrange a watering system to pump water from a tank onto the top of each panel and collect it in a gutter when it reaches the bottom. The water is then circulated back into the tank. This serves three purposes:

1. The panel is kept clean.
2. The panel is kept cool.
3. You get some free warm/hot water.

I have not tried this myself but it was done in Australia by a TV contributor by the name of Jingjoe. It is on my to do list.

By the way I like the angle of your car port roof. It looks optimum to me.

All good if you don't have hard water, if you do the cure will be worse than the disease 

[RideJocky]

All good if you don't have hard water, if you do the cure will be worse than the disease 

Using if your recycling you could redirect condensate from the AC units.

Recycling I imagine the water would get pretty hot pretty quick.

I would think if it once a week were enough you could just use a water-hose with good pressure, stand off to the side and make your own rain.

[Muhendis]

12 hours ago, 007 RED said:

we suffer from fine particles of coffee powder landing everywhere

4. Free coffee...........????

11 hours ago, Muhendis said:

An idea which I am assured works well is to arrange a watering system to pump water from a tank onto the top of each panel and collect it in a gutter when it reaches the bottom. The water is then circulated back into the tank. This serves three purposes:

1. The panel is kept clean.
2. The panel is kept cool.
3. You get some free warm/hot water.

I have not tried this myself but it was done in Australia by a TV contributor by the name of Jingjoe. It is on my to do list.

By the way I like the angle of your car port roof. It looks optimum to me.

[Crossy]

@007 RED the roof looks ideal.

 

Do be aware this is not a job to do alone, you'll need an assistant, the steel lengths are not light and the 300W panels weigh 23kg or so each.

 

The lad on the roof is my Thai step-son.

 

[Crossy]

1 minute ago, Muhendis said:

4. Free coffee...........????

 

That was exactly my immediate thought.

[007 RED]

17 hours ago, Muhendis said:

An idea which I am assured works well is to arrange a watering system to pump water from a tank onto the top of each panel and collect it in a gutter when it reaches the bottom. The water is then circulated back into the tank. This serves three purposes:

1. The panel is kept clean.
2. The panel is kept cool.
3. You get some free warm/hot water.

I have not tried this myself but it was done in Australia by a TV contributor by the name of Jingjoe. It is on my to do list.

By the way I like the angle of your car port roof. It looks optimum to me.

 

17 hours ago, johng said:

A spray bar system could work to keep the panels clean also it could keep them cool and so provide more power output...it could also be self powered as in when the panels make electricity some can be diverted to a water pump with closed loop water supply.

Many thanks for the suggestion of a 'close loop' water spray system.  Certainly an option to investigate and the bonus of helping to keep the panels a bit cooler and, therefore, more efficient is appealing. 

 

The only problem I foresee is that the 'coffee' dust will dissolved in the run-off water and after several cycles the water may become very dirty and defeat the original objective of keeping the panels clean.  A filter in the water system maybe a needed.

[007 RED]

16 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

All good if you don't have hard water, if you do the cure will be worse than the disease 

Could you please expand on your advice.... what adverse affect will hard water have on the panels?

[Muhendis]

4 minutes ago, 007 RED said:

A filter in the water system maybe a needed.

Filtered coffee..........????

[007 RED]

6 hours ago, Muhendis said:

4. Free coffee...........????

 

6 hours ago, Crossy said:

 

That was exactly my immediate thought.

I'm not sure that you would want to have a cup of this espresso gunk.

[johng]

3 minutes ago, 007 RED said:

what adverse affect will hard water have on the panels?

if the water is "hard"  it will have minerals dissolved in it, so its possible that "limescale" will form on the glass which would certainly reduce efficiency... so  use rain water captured from the roof which should be quite free of minerals.

[Muhendis]

2 minutes ago, 007 RED said:

 

I'm not sure that you would want to have a cup of this espresso gunk.

'course not. We're joking aren't we?

[007 RED]

6 hours ago, Crossy said:

@007 RED the roof looks ideal.

 

Do be aware this is not a job to do alone, you'll need an assistant, the steel lengths are not light and the 300W panels weigh 23kg or so each.

 

The lad on the roof is my Thai step-son.

 

Thanks for the safety warning, much appreciated. 

 

Mrs MoneyBaht and I went to our local Global Home store last week and they had the same panel in stock and at the same price as you quoted.  I tried to lift one to get some idea of their weight, and as you have indicated, yes they are quite heavy!  I think if I go ahead with a solar system I will ask the coffee factory owner if I can borrow their fork lift for an hour - were on good terms.

 

You mentioned the steel lengths which you used to lift the panels off the roof.  I was thinking of using aluminium sections similar to what they use for window/door frames.  It may be a bit more expensive, but they hopefully wont rust.

[BritManToo]

13 minutes ago, 007 RED said:

Mrs MoneyBaht and I went to our local Global Home store last week and they had the same panel in stock and at the same price as you quoted. 

Cheaper through shopee ......... 3,650bht inc delivery.

https://shopee.co.th/product/53019024/2055214342

[Muhendis]

15 minutes ago, 007 RED said:

I was thinking of using aluminium sections similar to what they use for window/door frames.  It may be a bit more expensive, but they hopefully wont rust.

You might like this

http://mechashop.weloveshopping.com/store/product/อุปกรณ์ยึดแผงโซล่าเซลล์-2052783-th.html

[Muhendis]

17 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

All good if you don't have hard water, if you do the cure will be worse than the disease 

I'm a bit 50:50 on that one. Calcium will certainly precipate out of water given heat and stationary water but I'm not convinced that flowing water over glass will be a problem. Given lack of knowledge I think I would err on the side of caution and use soft water.

[007 RED]

29 minutes ago, Muhendis said:

I'm a bit 50:50 on that one. Calcium will certainly precipate out of water given heat and stationary water but I'm not convinced that flowing water over glass will be a problem. Given lack of knowledge I think I would err on the side of caution and use soft water.

Like you I'm not sure what the affect of hard water will be on the upper surface of the solar panel.  You mention glass.  But is it glass or some form of plastic like they use on LED TV's screens?

[johng]

3 minutes ago, 007 RED said:

But is it glass or some form of plastic like they use on LED TV's screens?

All the "proper" solar panels I've seen use glass... I would think the suns UV rays would damage the plastic quite quickly ?

[RideJocky]

Wet constantly in the sun won’t algae grow?

Wet-dry-wet-dry in the sun won’t bad water-spots develop?




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