You seem to love looking for a lot of bargains putting your family home together, from your family background you had a lot of family showing you had to do these things. You are doing an awesome and amazing.
Looks Good! My only suggestion. I don't think the set screw is going to be good enough to keep it from not spinning in the wind. I would drill through and pin it or bolt it
Hi Invention Development; That is called "Tableing". This only gives false security as the mount should be strong enough to resist any wind from any direction iat all times. See my comments above. Down bursts happen in a couple of seconds at any time. There is not enough time to do tableing. Besides there are other aerodynamic effect that are just as bad. redrok redrok.com
Yes I'm sure your glad to get that off your mind since it's been a year and a half! Looks like it should hold up in the wind as well which I know you said was a concern. Things are really coming together now so I happy for you and the family. Thanks again for sharing.
Looking good, you've avoided mistakes that a lot of others have made by not mounting them so low on the ground that they get covered by snow and weeds, and by making them rotatable. Hoping you can install the batteries pretty close. It should be pretty easy to add a tracking actuator later on.
I bought 2.5kw in used solar for $577 delivered. I just uploaded a video and they seem to produce the power and more. I was going to buy 10 more panels but was really curious of the condition. I just realized I will use 3 in series so that's 9 or 12 per array.
Hi Red Poppy Ranch guys; I don't want to be critical but I do want to say that I think your mount is a bit weak for the panel array you have. Here are my comments on it. Wind loading calculations based on the National Building Code, NBC. I 'm wary about the strength of the main pipe you are using in your design. My problem is your not designing to a high enough wind force. The NBC is used for houses, structures, and towers in windy environments. Generally, the wind loading portion of the code is used to design for horizontal wind pressure is 10 lbf/ft^2. Some areas of the country use 15 lbf/ft^2. This means the structure must resist this load for every square foot projected horizontally. Other local building codes I have seen go to an extreme of 50 lbf/ft^2. You need to see what your building codes say. The max force is not caused by normal weather based wind which rarely exceeds 70mph. The max survivable force is caused by down bursts from cumulus clouds which causes an almost instantaneous 90mph which is 10lbf/ft^2. 105mph causes 15lbf/ft^2. Down bursts don't happen often but they do happen annoyingly enough. I have, over the years, had a number of my customers that it happened to. Some survived, others didn't. They had an expensive lesson. Of course, tornado go much higher but are not survivable. Hurricanes are also not survivable but you have time to take the panels down. I don't think your drill stem will survive, even the 4" won't survive. I have not calculated the dynamic wind loads nor the panel supports. There is a reason the big commercial mounts have massive support pipe. Take a look at what I call "Tripod Mounts" which are stronger in every way and use relatively light materials. See: www.redrok.com/electron.htm#tripod I have a spreadsheet that may be useful for calculating pole strengths. I tailored it for your vertical post. See: www.redrok.com/Red_Poppy_Drill_Stem.xls I hope this is helpful! redrok redrok@redrok.com
Why not use a jack screw or a 12 v ram to do your fine tuning? I would also run angle iron as a brace to take out your bow….any flex or deflection adds to some solar loss.
i watched this again to see the cost of the panels. I heard you say the pipe was about $450, but what was the cost of the panels and what is the rating of them. I think what you are doing is great!! When you are doing this stuff it is sometimes by the seat of the pants, but it seems like you have been planning. Again great job. Thanks for sharing this.
How did you attach your solar panels to the unistrut. Iam planing no building a mount like yours I have been researching different mounts for a long time. I really like your home stead. I have built 2 of them in the middle of no where alought of work.
Are you going to be able to get the building built around the water tank before it freezes. How cold does it need to get before the water freezes in the tank? Thanks
Snow. They are in an area that 3 feet of snow is common enough so there needs to be some space between the bottom and the ground to hold what slides off and what is pushed off between clearing sessions.
The higher the better, to get as clear a line of site to the sun as possible, any shading from trees and bushes and the hill will make a massive difference to the efficiency
Throw a chain over the horizontal pipe and weld to the vertical pipe to keep the entire array from lifting off in a storm. It will let you rotate the setup still and if you need to remove can cut the chain off. Don't forget the snow load for weight that the setup needs to support. With the side of the arrays you will need to clear the snow in front of them after each storm so a small level path large enough for a plow to push the snow away or else it will be lots of shoveling before the snow hardens up. One idea that might help keep the panels clear is attaching tubes to the back of each panel to send warmed water (50-60F) ahead of a snow storm with a little wood burner to heat the water and a 12v pump to circulate it. Don't need to get the panels hot just above 32F for them to melt the snow as it hits. The same heater would also make cleaning them off easier if you start heating and create a water layer between the snow and glass. With 3 arrays you can have one aimed more south east for early light. one aimed south for mid day and one aimed more south west for late day sun with them all producing all day just when each is at its peak.
Before you paint your next 2 pipe mounts , go buy a quart of 4% Phosphoric acid and acid wash the pipe ! USE rubber gloves !!!! It'll remove all the rust , let it sit for 24 hours , then paint . Should be available @ home depot and\or Lowes ! You should really use cement for your main pipe sloar mounts . The dirt will allow the pipe to lean if the snow load gets too heavy on one side or the other . UNLESS , you add pipe braces to the main pipe !!!!!
Wow, that's a big sail. My concern would be wind catching that puppy and popping it out of the ground. Just a thought, but might consider a piece of rebar, angle iron, or something crossway to give resistance to it just being pulled out of ground, if wind catches it just right. 50-80mph are not unheard of, kind of common in my part of the world. I've had my 8' satellite dish move with a 1,000 pound piece of concrete bolted to it. Something you might consider for east west adjustment is installing mobile home tie down augers a few feet out from each lower corner, and use ratchet load straps to turn, and anchor panels to ground.
I would run 4 lengths of unistrut across it, one of our neighbors installed a ground mount similar but with fencing pipe. We had a really good wind up here and the wind put a twisting force on the panels and cracked all the panels from the flex from the wind..
Hope that I am wrong but I think that you need that pipe installed, anchored into a LARGE cement block. They use about 4 yards of concrete here so that it won't blow away or pull out.
Rugger is your Faithful Friend. Question, do you put the dirt on your face or is it just a long day of work? :-) I know it is a long hard day of Fun then work. Thanks again for keeping things real.
If you run the electric wires under ground, encase any wire showing from the ground up the pole to the panels,we used an old hose and coated it in tar to keep the rabbits from chewing the wires
I fenced in my priory with railroad ties and cattle panels, 16’, and Tractor supply 5 yrs ago had a smoking deal, I couldn’t pass it up, was cheaper than the rolled fence as well. How heavy are those? I think mine were,200-250lbs each.....I installed 75, and three telephone poles for a ranch style entrance way....memories....
I’ve watched this video 50 times and I want to copy yours to the tea I’m using 395 white panels I’m gonna have to use counterbalance legs we can’t penetrate the soil in Southeast Oklahoma would you by any chance be willing to send me your dimensions my panels are 40 x 80 anyhow great job
Check this site out for your angle. All you do is plug in USA, state and city. This will give you the angel you need to have set for the best production per season. This is what I used when I had solar. I moved the angle twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall. Keep in mind that in my experience when the panels are hot they are less efficient that when there cooler. solarelectricityhandbook.com/solar-angle-calculator.html
how long has this system been up have you had any galvonic corrosion with the different metal types .i heard you need to add nylon washers inbetween the 2 surfaces . thanks let me know
How are you storing energy, batteries don’t last so I’m sure someone’s used super capacitors but i haven’t found them yet. You could add a retaining natural pool with a hydroelectric setup. I think a waterfall retaining wall behind the house would look great, plus since you’ve saidur not going to have ac your n your kids are gonna want some way to stay cool in the summer.
The only reason to put panels on a roof other than making them harder to steal... Is you don't have enough property to use a ground mount.. Think about being up over 2 storys.. Having to clean then for dirt and snow build up.. And any maintance problems... And efficiency loss from the roofs heat.... Plus you would be putting holes in the roof for the mounting hardware..
See if you can find a tracking telescope you can use that mechanism to track the sun in order to get the most direct sun for the longest period possible as it is where you are peak solar hours are low so getting as much as you can may be of great benefit especially during the winter months
Nice setup, I find being able to adjust from time to time can be helpful. If I've had a particularly high use day I'll tilt my panel for optimum morning sun then re-adjust it back as the day passes. Great Channel as well. Congrats on all your subs.
Looks great, paint and tie it down. I have made one like but it's out of 5" case. I have 1k (9x125)on a tracker. been up and running since 2011! thoughts panels are very nice!
If you're really concerned about the pipes rusting and losing integrity you could strap an anode (big piece of zinc) onto it. The zinc will rust out preferentially to the iron just like in a hot water heater.
You may want to build a stair case from the back yard to your solar panels - it will make access easier for routine cleaning and inspection. Looks good.
Awesome adjustable mount system, Heath. Question, can you get to the u-bolt nuts to adjust the tilt? Typically summer and winter tilts will be somewhat different.
Ok. So now you have water and electricity up there. When will you bring in your propane tank? Man you guys will be living up there before too long! Well done! (And I do reaize that you need to finish hooking everything up and connecting it to the house...) But you're really moving forward. Oh and I agree with one of the other comments. Thru drill that mount, and reinforce your corners. You have a very large wind sail there and you don't want to lose it to the weather...
To camouflage the solar panel array from the road, you could build trellis or arbor (grow plant of choice), or build a rammed earth wall too block the view and act as a wind brake.
You seem to love looking for a lot of bargains putting your family home together, from your family background you had a lot of family showing you had to do these things. You are doing an awesome and amazing.
Looks Good! My only suggestion. I don't think the set screw is going to be good enough to keep it from not spinning in the wind. I would drill through and pin it or bolt it
Might be enough if he has the chains on the ends adequately staked. But, yes, that array is a lot of wind catchment and will be a long term concern.
3/16th or 1/4 threaded bolt would do the job.
Hi Invention Development;
That is called "Tableing". This only gives false security as the mount should be strong enough to resist any wind from any direction iat all times. See my comments above.
Down bursts happen in a couple of seconds at any time. There is not enough time to do tableing. Besides there are other aerodynamic effect that are just as bad.
redrok
redrok.com
unless you are going to seasonally adjust it, just weld it, it can always be ground off later.
@@duanecjohnson nice to see you on here… bought a few solar trackers from you in the past.
Yes I'm sure your glad to get that off your mind since it's been a year and a half! Looks like it should hold up in the wind as well which I know you said was a concern. Things are really coming together now so I happy for you and the family. Thanks again for sharing.
Looking good, you've avoided mistakes that a lot of others have made by not mounting them so low on the ground that they get covered by snow and weeds, and by making them rotatable. Hoping you can install the batteries pretty close.
It should be pretty easy to add a tracking actuator later on.
That mount looks awesome. Well done. You will have ample power from that system.
Wow that’s wonderful awesome congratulations
Nice job bud. Things are starting to get exciting. Won't self sufficient electricity be wonderful. Looking forward to your next video. God Bless...
Way to go. Love how you saved money and made your own custom rack.
Nice mount.
Nice!!! ( it will pull out of the ground with a back side wind....)
Really good job, Heath.
Looks good man!
Nice. Thank you for sharing. Awesome!
"Without the excavator this would be a lot more difficult" - Damn it. Next.... ;)
Nice stand brother.
Lookin good.
ExCeLlEnT - well planned and explained
I loved the sped up format
and all without trying to be damm Tom Cruise
You couldn’t of done it without that Dog
Thanks for the video
I bought 2.5kw in used solar for $577 delivered. I just uploaded a video and they seem to produce the power and more. I was going to buy 10 more panels but was really curious of the condition. I just realized I will use 3 in series so that's 9 or 12 per array.
Hi Red Poppy Ranch guys;
I don't want to be critical but I do want to say that I think your mount is a bit weak for the panel array you have. Here are my comments on it.
Wind loading calculations based on the National Building Code, NBC.
I 'm wary about the strength of the main pipe you are using in your design. My problem is your not designing to a high enough wind force. The NBC is used for houses, structures, and towers in windy environments.
Generally, the wind loading portion of the code is used to design for horizontal wind pressure is 10 lbf/ft^2. Some areas of the country use 15 lbf/ft^2. This means the structure must resist this load for every square foot projected horizontally. Other local building codes I have seen go to an extreme of 50 lbf/ft^2. You need to see what your building codes say.
The max force is not caused by normal weather based wind which rarely exceeds 70mph.
The max survivable force is caused by down bursts from cumulus clouds which causes
an almost instantaneous 90mph which is 10lbf/ft^2. 105mph causes 15lbf/ft^2.
Down bursts don't happen often but they do happen annoyingly enough.
I have, over the years, had a number of my customers that it happened to.
Some survived, others didn't. They had an expensive lesson.
Of course, tornado go much higher but are not survivable.
Hurricanes are also not survivable but you have time to take the panels down.
I don't think your drill stem will survive, even the 4" won't survive.
I have not calculated the dynamic wind loads nor the panel supports. There is a reason
the big commercial mounts have massive support pipe.
Take a look at what I call "Tripod Mounts" which are stronger in every way and use relatively light materials. See:
www.redrok.com/electron.htm#tripod
I have a spreadsheet that may be useful for calculating pole strengths. I tailored it for your vertical post. See:
www.redrok.com/Red_Poppy_Drill_Stem.xls
I hope this is helpful!
redrok
redrok@redrok.com
Why not use a jack screw or a 12 v ram to do your fine tuning?
I would also run angle iron as a brace to take out your bow….any flex or deflection adds to some solar loss.
i watched this again to see the cost of the panels. I heard you say the pipe was about $450, but what was the cost of the panels and what is the rating of them. I think what you are doing is great!! When you are doing this stuff it is sometimes by the seat of the pants, but it seems like you have been planning. Again great job. Thanks for sharing this.
Thank you for the video, just a thought why didn’t you fit the solar panels to the roof of your house??? Take care and thank you 😎👍🇬🇧.
I wanted to adjust them to utilize the sun. If they were fixed I worried it would not be enough.
How did you attach your solar panels to the unistrut. Iam planing no building a mount like yours I have been researching different mounts for a long time. I really like your home stead. I have built 2 of them in the middle of no where alought of work.
Hope it all works out... but you should stick with the chain tie downs... looks be damned ... a big wind will test the design.
Would a grease insert where the two pieces come together help prevent them from rusting together?
They're not that tight.
when do you plan on moving in.
Once the addition is done.
I was just wondering..is windmill power also a option with you being on top of a mountain?
We will definitely utilize a wind generator as well.
Would love to see that too. Thanks for sharing!
Are you going to be able to get the building built around the water tank before it freezes. How cold does it need to get before the water freezes in the tank? Thanks
it' the pipe and fitting that I'm worried about. I'm slowly working on the tank.
burying it ill be easier if the tanks rated for it.
You say the is completely adjustable but it looks like your tilt angle is set. If you don't change the tilt angle, it is not adjustable.
Why do people make the mounts so high lower to ground be better so they don't stand out as much..?
Snow clearance probably.
He is in snow country. It makes life easier not having to shovel them out when he cleans/sweeps them in the winter.
Snow. They are in an area that 3 feet of snow is common enough so there needs to be some space between the bottom and the ground to hold what slides off and what is pushed off between clearing sessions.
The higher the better, to get as clear a line of site to the sun as possible, any shading from trees and bushes and the hill will make a massive difference to the efficiency
I'm curious how these things hold up in hail
You have great Macgyver skills, and you just can't teach that type of stuff. Excited to see power soon!
Throw a chain over the horizontal pipe and weld to the vertical pipe to keep the entire array from lifting off in a storm. It will let you rotate the setup still and if you need to remove can cut the chain off.
Don't forget the snow load for weight that the setup needs to support.
With the side of the arrays you will need to clear the snow in front of them after each storm so a small level path large enough for a plow to push the snow away or else it will be lots of shoveling before the snow hardens up.
One idea that might help keep the panels clear is attaching tubes to the back of each panel to send warmed water (50-60F) ahead of a snow storm with a little wood burner to heat the water and a 12v pump to circulate it. Don't need to get the panels hot just above 32F for them to melt the snow as it hits. The same heater would also make cleaning them off easier if you start heating and create a water layer between the snow and glass.
With 3 arrays you can have one aimed more south east for early light. one aimed south for mid day and one aimed more south west for late day sun with them all producing all day just when each is at its peak.
Before you paint your next 2 pipe mounts , go buy a quart of 4% Phosphoric acid and acid wash the pipe ! USE rubber gloves !!!! It'll remove all the rust , let it sit for 24 hours , then paint . Should be available @ home depot and\or Lowes ! You should really use cement for your main pipe sloar mounts . The dirt will allow the pipe to lean if the snow load gets too heavy on one side or the other . UNLESS , you add pipe braces to the main pipe !!!!!
Wow, that's a big sail. My concern would be wind catching that puppy and popping it out of the ground. Just a thought, but might consider a piece of rebar, angle iron, or something crossway to give resistance to it just being pulled out of ground, if wind catches it just right. 50-80mph are not unheard of, kind of common in my part of the world. I've had my 8' satellite dish move with a 1,000 pound piece of concrete bolted to it. Something you might consider for east west adjustment is installing mobile home tie down augers a few feet out from each lower corner, and use ratchet load straps to turn, and anchor panels to ground.
I would run 4 lengths of unistrut across it, one of our neighbors installed a ground mount similar but with fencing pipe. We had a really good wind up here and the wind put a twisting force on the panels and cracked all the panels from the flex from the wind..
Hope you're doing better this week! Hey I think I was the first comment😄
You have a GREAT KNACKED Of finding scrap stuff thatsTOTALLY USEABLE, GREAT JOB AS USUAL!!!
Ruger sure looks like the best partner you could have on your trip
Wind loading is a big concern. Over build it. It's not good enough with out more braceing
Hope that I am wrong but I think that you need that pipe installed, anchored into a LARGE cement block. They use about 4 yards of concrete here so that it won't blow away or pull out.
Totally agree, the wind loads will be massive - with out the concrete mass these panels will be off like kite in the first high winds.
check out horst carpentry good watch
Rugger is your Faithful Friend. Question, do you put the dirt on your face or is it just a long day of work? :-) I know it is a long hard day of Fun then work. Thanks again for keeping things real.
My magnetic personality only attracts the dirt...
If you run the electric wires under ground, encase any wire showing from the ground up the pole to the panels,we used an old hose and coated it in tar to keep the rabbits from chewing the wires
Looking great. Admire your ability to solo tackle such a variety of challenges. God Bless
Great job. Well thought out. You are always on top of your game.
I fenced in my priory with railroad ties and cattle panels, 16’, and Tractor supply 5 yrs ago had a smoking deal, I couldn’t pass it up, was cheaper than the rolled fence as well. How heavy are those? I think mine were,200-250lbs each.....I installed 75, and three telephone poles for a ranch style entrance way....memories....
Like it. Bracing for sure. They look damn good. 👍👍 Vinny 🇺🇸
I would tac weld those ubolts so they can't twist in the wind. God bless.
I will need to move them a couple times a year.
I’ve watched this video 50 times and I want to copy yours to the tea I’m using 395 white panels I’m gonna have to use counterbalance legs we can’t penetrate the soil in Southeast Oklahoma would you by any chance be willing to send me your dimensions my panels are 40 x 80 anyhow great job
Any updates on this 4 year later? What would you change now versus then? Has it held up to wind and how much wind was it? Thanks
Check this site out for your angle. All you do is plug in USA, state and city. This will give you the angel you need to have set for the best production per season. This is what I used when I had solar. I moved the angle twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall. Keep in mind that in my experience when the panels are hot they are less efficient that when there cooler. solarelectricityhandbook.com/solar-angle-calculator.html
Get some actuators for it and make it a sun tracking array
how long has this system been up have you had any galvonic corrosion with the different metal types .i heard you need to add nylon washers inbetween the 2 surfaces . thanks let me know
How are you storing energy, batteries don’t last so I’m sure someone’s used super capacitors but i haven’t found them yet. You could add a retaining natural pool with a hydroelectric setup. I think a waterfall retaining wall behind the house would look great, plus since you’ve saidur not going to have ac your n your kids are gonna want some way to stay cool in the summer.
Why didn't you put them on the roof?
I didn't want any potential roof issues.
The only reason to put panels on a roof other than making them harder to steal... Is you don't have enough property to use a ground mount..
Think about being up over 2 storys.. Having to clean then for dirt and snow build up.. And any maintance problems...
And efficiency loss from the roofs heat....
Plus you would be putting holes in the roof for the mounting hardware..
@@mainlawcafewv7681
?????.????
Shopping Around Wise And Saves Cash.
Why don't you mount them on top of the roof of the house?
I want to adjust them with the summer and winter changes. I couldn't do that on the roof.
See if you can find a tracking telescope you can use that mechanism to track the sun in order to get the most direct sun for the longest period possible as it is where you are peak solar hours are low so getting as much as you can may be of great benefit especially during the winter months
Ok to hide them from view , but could be a source of pride going solar and off grid . Two thumbs up
Nice setup, I find being able to adjust from time to time can be helpful. If I've had a particularly high use day I'll tilt my panel for optimum morning sun then re-adjust it back as the day passes. Great Channel as well. Congrats on all your subs.
Thanks!
Your trees are coloring beautifully. In NW Louisiana, our trees will not fully turn til Mid November.
Great show, but you move the camera too fast and it makes me dizzy.
I wish you had shown how you attached the panels to the unastrut. It’s not clear how you did that.
Set one array to the SouthEast and one to the SouthWest. That will give you power over more of the day
Looks great, paint and tie it down. I have made one like but it's out of 5" case. I have 1k (9x125)on a tracker. been up and running since 2011! thoughts panels are very nice!
If you're really concerned about the pipes rusting and losing integrity you could strap an anode (big piece of zinc) onto it. The zinc will rust out preferentially to the iron just like in a hot water heater.
Mate...a awesome job..again!!...you are a one man building machine!! Love your drive, effort and attitude...as we say down under "crack on!!" :)
Thanks!
You may want to build a stair case from the back yard to your solar panels - it will make access easier for routine cleaning and inspection. Looks good.
My DIY Solartracker ➡️ th-cam.com/video/X0lmYFwOq3U/w-d-xo.html
Been just binge watching this project and i love your posts. Clean, hardworking and pure.
Here in AK, I was suggested South East
Looks good. Well done. I would also like to see how you mounted the panels to the struts. You did not show that clearly. Thanks.
I have been binge watching your homestead series. Seriously impressive. I am jealous. There needs to be more people like you in this world. Good work
WOW! I thought my style was unique. Save a penny were you cant to use that penny on some other project.
Repurpose, restore, recycle. Good thinking brother.
Great vid
Please keep us informed on design changes in the added mounts
And your experiences with them over the next few years
Did you wire each mount in series parrelel
Well casing was a darn good idea
I always use 2" galv water pipe for our ground mount installs
Excellent video
Fantastic job. Everything turns out grate my friend and thanks for sharing
Awesome adjustable mount system, Heath. Question, can you get to the u-bolt nuts to adjust the tilt? Typically summer and winter tilts will be somewhat different.
I will adjust them twice a year as we get the best angle figured out.
Nice pole mount thanks for sharing with us
Ok. So now you have water and electricity up there. When will you bring in your propane tank? Man you guys will be living up there before too long! Well done! (And I do reaize that you need to finish hooking everything up and connecting it to the house...) But you're really moving forward. Oh and I agree with one of the other comments. Thru drill that mount, and reinforce your corners. You have a very large wind sail there and you don't want to lose it to the weather...
I've got my eyes on a tank.
Time to switch unistrut for hilti strut ;)
It all looks great! Nesseity mother of all invention.
Did you use a combined box on each mount
love the idea of recycled used or old material. save the earth. good job
You made basically a sail. That thing is going to catch wind like crazy.
Fine I'll say it, for the record. Rugger is one of the best names for a country dog I have ever heard! :D
Especially for a bird dog.
Keep up the great work your home is all coming together!
nice job
That’s beautiful ❕❕❕❕
To camouflage the solar panel array from the road, you could build trellis or arbor (grow plant of choice), or build a
rammed earth wall too block the view and act as a wind brake.
Though about a trellis for grapes or something.
Wow! Look at those trees behind you! Gorgeous!
Looks great
What about high winds ?
Another big step in getting moved in.
It looks very professional, good job!