Pole-mounted solar-electric (photovoltaic; PV) arrays are a great option for many sites.
You don’t need to worry about the orientation or angle of an existing roof,or about roof penetrations. Pole mounts allow easy, manual adjustment of thearray’s tilt angle, or you can choose automatic tracking mounts to optimize energyproduction. They provide great air circulation to keep PV temperature down and power output up during warm weather, and make clearing snow off the array asimple task in wintry climes.
Today I’ll walk you through each step of the array assembly and wiring. Even if the equipment you use is different than mine, the information will be a useful installation guide for your own pole-mounted PV array.
Assemble the Mount
Most pole mounts are designed and manufactured for specific PV modules. When you contact your mount supplier, they’ll need to know the brand, model, and quantity of PV modules planned for your system. Each mount will come with step-by-step assembly instructions. Getting your mount assembled on the top of the pole is as easy as following the directions, but I have a couple of tips that will help simplify the job. First, don’t fully tighten the bolts that fasten the PV-mounting rails to the rest of the structure until all of the modules are in place. This will give you some wiggle room if any of the predrilled mounting holes in the rack are a little off.
Don’t forget to fully secure the rail hardware once the PVs are in place. Second, pole mounts are designed to allow seasonal adjustment of the tilt angle of the array. While you’re installing the array, it can be laid flat, at close to vertical, or anywhere in between. In general, I like to set the angle of the array at about 45 degrees. This limits the amount of uncomfortable overhead work. If the array is mounted on a tall pole, securing it in a horizontal position will make the whole array easier to reach.
For the last 8 days we have been talking about setting the pole for your home’s solar panel systems. For those of you who having been following this article, hopefully you have yours built already and are ready for this next stage. for those of you just tuning in now, I might suggest looking for DIY Home solar kits to help you build your own solar panels. This link will direct you to a site that has this type of information along with reading materials on sustainable energy, solar and wind energy, solar garden lighting and so much more. Lots of good articles on solar, wind and green construction.
Tomorrow we will continue our discussion on Mounting the PV’s to the structure – tune back.
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