Solar panel that tilts.

[Richard n Ann]

Help a

Dumb blonde please .... why would a flat panel get less power at mid-day, when the sun is directly overhead?

It wouldn't, the panel is tiltable for October when the sun is lower in the sky

 

[DBK]

Help a

Dumb blonde please .... why would a flat panel get less power at mid-day, when the sun is directly overhead?

If the sun is directly overhead then a flat panel is ideal but I was referring to times of the year when the sun is not directly overhead. My fault for spelling "low" as "aow".

 

[Fletton]

I saw one last week on a Mini Winni...
Parked up at Riverside Gardens nr Retford-ish..

OP pressed a button just inside door... panel came up like a sat dish and faced and tracked the sun until he pressed button and it folded flat again...

I was tempted to take a pic/vid to post on ere at the time.... but didn't in end.

 

[eddie]

Has anybody fitted a panel to their roof that can be tilted? I'll be fitting a 150w panel when we get back, and I want it to be of use in Spain during September and October when the sun starts getting lower. We usually park with the awning facing west so we get good afternoon sun therefore the back of the van usually faces south.
I'm thinking maybe put a piano hinge at the back of the panel so the front lifts up 45 degrees. The front of the panel would maybe sit on aluminum 20 x 40 'unistrut' and have 2 scallop knobs to release it.

Anybody got thoughts or experience on this?

Like this?

 

[Fletton]

Like this?

That looks like the very model I saw.... even installed in same place...

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[two]

Oyster also make them. And one that doubles as a satellite dish after dusk.

 

[golly]

Years ago on the forum, a Funster had a project to make a tracking solar panel using a sat dish motor,gps etc. Cant remember who it was or what the outcome was, anyone remember ?

 

[eddie]

That looks like the very model I saw.... even installed in same place...

We have one on our exhibition unit so people often see it at shows. The pictures on the link were of our last camper, which had one on as well

 

[eddie]

Oyster also make them. And one that doubles as a satellite dish after dusk.

Oyster discontinued them last year, too few sales to justify the effort

 

[rcscs]

Apologies for resurrecting an old thread - but was reading through this post and thought of this...

Panel installed across (long edge) the vehicle roof. Hinge at the front of the vehicle only.
Hole/tube in roof to interior - aligned centre of long width of panel.
Hinged rod (think curtain rod with a hinge - but something stronger probably) - has 'castor' at one end which sits in a track mounted to the underside of the SP. Track would need to be a 'channel' so that the caster could 'hold down' the rear of the panel when shut.
Would probably put some chain/wire strops to the rear corners of the panel also.
Vehicle would need to be parked facing sun to get benefits - push up on rod from inside van will tilt the panel forwards, some sort of locking latch would be required inside to hold 'rod' in place when in up position. On closure (travelling) rod is hinged at 90 degrees and clipped to ceiling.
Force of wind while traveling should keep panel down - but rod would help to stop the rear end 'bouncing'.
If tube through roof is fitted with flanges and rubber grommits water ingress should be minimal (?) as under panel when travelling (and when stopped and tilt).

Back of the envelope stuff - but interested to hear what anybody thinks...

R.

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[JJ]

you'd need to inform your insurers what you had done as it wouldn't be the 'usual' installation

Oh dear...



JJ (Superior and Smug)

 

[hilldweller]

unless you lower them again you will get less power than a flat panel at the beginning and end of the day.

I need some convincing of this.

 

[Richard n Ann]

Apologies for resurrecting an old thread - but was reading through this post and thought of this...

Panel installed across (long edge) the vehicle roof. Hinge at the front of the vehicle only.
Hole/tube in roof to interior - aligned centre of long width of panel.
Hinged rod (think curtain rod with a hinge - but something stronger probably) - has 'castor' at one end which sits in a track mounted to the underside of the SP. Track would need to be a 'channel' so that the caster could 'hold down' the rear of the panel when shut.
Would probably put some chain/wire strops to the rear corners of the panel also.
Vehicle would need to be parked facing sun to get benefits - push up on rod from inside van will tilt the panel forwards, some sort of locking latch would be required inside to hold 'rod' in place when in up position. On closure (travelling) rod is hinged at 90 degrees and clipped to ceiling.
Force of wind while traveling should keep panel down - but rod would help to stop the rear end 'bouncing'.
If tube through roof is fitted with flanges and rubber grommits water ingress should be minimal (?) as under panel when travelling (and when stopped and tilt).

Back of the envelope stuff - but interested to hear what anybody thinks...

R.




View attachment 260103

Don't like that at all... Would be very hard to make it sturdy whilst erected, the hinged rod would need to lock straight. You'd need solid fixings into the ceiling for windy days, is that possible? But the worst feature - it would drip water in every time it rains!

 

[Silver-Fox]

You could install a worm gear system with left and right hand threads, gear each side of centre along with attached arms.
Handle operated similar to awning setup.
Being a mechanical system it would lock into position both upright and when flat.

 

[two]

Interesting idea, with room for improvement.
But, before I drill through the roof, I'd experiment to see what the gains are from a tilted panel over a flat one. The theory's great but I'm not so sure in practise.
There have been tracking panels for sale from Alden and Oyster but they seem to have disappeared. It may well be because of their cost. For the price of one of those things you could simply have a larger array of flat panels. It might otherwise have been due to lack of effectiveness, or something else, but I've not seen credible reports from such owners.

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[mike mcglynn]

I have seen a few solar panels attached to the rear of a satellite dish .

 

[Richard n Ann]

Interesting idea, with room for improvement.
But, before I drill through the roof, I'd experiment to see what the gains are from a tilted panel over a flat one. The theory's great but I'm not so sure in practise.
There have been tracking panels for sale from Alden and Oyster but they seem to have disappeared. It may well be because of their cost. For the price of one of those things you could simply have a larger array of flat panels. It might otherwise have been due to lack of effectiveness, or something else, but I've not seen credible reports from such owners.

Believe me the gains are big when the sun is low in the sky. Flat, my 150w panel will typically charge at 2 amps, but put it up to 40° and it shoots up to 9 amps which is virtually full power.

When I did the tests before I installed the main panel I got 2 amps out of my 40w panel in February. The sun was so low in the sky I had to put it on a table so the sun hit it.

 

[airwave]

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBVkZRi1SH4

Has anybody fitted a panel to their roof that can be tilted?

Yeah , had this discussion before . There's a lot on u tube , Rich , take a look for yourself .

Just to wet your appetite , one i found a while back ,

 

[Abacist]

I should think the will consume all the power that the panels produce!

Impressive though. Is the Motorhome on a turntable to rotate with the sun?

 

[tonyidle]

There should be a few old Oyster sat units around by now. Even with only manual control of the two axis motors one would make a useful tilt and rotate mechanism.

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[TinaLes]

Picture above found on internet from
At only £23.95
Or is that solution too easy or simplistic?
If mounted on roof near rear Heki roof light then one could reach out and raise/lower the panel without getting up on the roof from outside.
Les

 

[Minxy]

Picture above found on internet from
At only £23.95
Or is that solution too easy or simplistic?
If mounted on roof near rear Heki roof light then one could reach out and raise/lower the panel without getting up on the roof from outside.
Les

That's EXACTLY what I was thinking earlier but I couldn't be bothered to read back through the thread to see if I'd said it before!

 

[Reallyretired]

Help a

Dumb blonde please .... why would a flat panel get less power at mid-day, when the sun is directly overhead?

The sun is only directly overhead at midday at the equator all the year round or between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn some of the time. Never in Europe.

 

[stevec]

What he needs is one of these!

 

[OldAgeTravellers]

I know this an old thread but still a good idea. I recently discovered that the cable lead through for my panels had come unstuck, a bit worrying because the same Sikoflex was used for the panels. But it was under the panel so I had to drill out the pop rivets to lift the panel so as to re fasten the plastic units. I decided that as under the panels was full of leaves and filthy I would hinge it on the door side which we always face to the sun. So I could clean under there regularly and work out a tilting system. Unfortunately I only had steel hinges so have to source some stainless or brass ones. But when done the gain was amazing, late afternoon mid September in the South of France went from 5 amp to 12 amp that is reading the output from my Bluetooth Victron meter with the other two panels covered. All I have to do now is find a good fixing system when down and an adjustable prop system. @Richard and Ann where did you get your hinges?
Steve

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[Richard n Ann]

I know this an old thread but still a good idea. I recently discovered that the cable lead through for my panels had come unstuck, a bit worrying because the same Sikoflex was used for the panels. But it was under the panel so I had to drill out the pop rivets to lift the panel so as to re fasten the plastic units. I decided that as under the panels was full of leaves and filthy I would hinge it on the door side which we always face to the sun. So I could clean under there regularly and work out a tilting system. Unfortunately I only had steel hinges so have to source some stainless or brass ones. But when done the gain was amazing, late afternoon mid September in the South of France went from 5 amp to 12 amp that is reading the output from my Bluetooth Victron meter with the other two panels covered. All I have to do now is find a good fixing system when down and an adjustable prop system. @Richard and Ann where did you get your hinges?
Steve

Wickes. Stainless ball bearing mmm

Only about a fiver a pair.

 

[OldAgeTravellers]

Wickes. Stainless ball bearing mmm

Only about a fiver a pair.

Thanks I am in the UK so will have a look later.
Steve

 

[hilldweller]

I have seen a few solar panels attached to the rear of a satellite dish .

So choose - watch TV or charge batteries. Poor compromise.

 

[hilldweller]

There should be a few old Oyster sat units around by now. Even with only manual control of the two axis motors one would make a useful tilt and rotate mechanism.

As detailed by @Snowbird some time ago.

 

[mike mcglynn]

So choose - watch TV or charge batteries. Poor compromise.

Not my choice Brian merely an observation.

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