# Got my panels up



## MichaelK! (Oct 22, 2010)

Got my solar panels mounted on the porch roof. A mix of 158 watt DM and 45 watt Harbor Freights, about 400 watts total. Got it finished at about 5pm when the panels went into the shade. Have it linked to Trojian T105 batteries with a Sunforce charge controller.


Made the frames out of sheetrock edging that I welded myself and painted. Have the angle set at the winter optimum for my latitude.


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## wy_white_wolf (Oct 14, 2004)

Looks like your front panels might be casting a shadow on the HF panels. Are the specs on the panels close enough for them to be ran to the same charge controller without a huge power loss?

WWW


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## 12vman (Feb 17, 2004)

Nice.. Did ya put blocking diodes on each panel? This would avoid the losses..


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## MichaelK! (Oct 22, 2010)

wy_white_wolf said:


> Looks like your front panels might be casting a shadow on the HF panels. Are the specs on the panels close enough for them to be ran to the same charge controller without a huge power loss?
> 
> WWW


No, they are not. There's a big oak on the west side of the cabin which shades the panels after 4pm. I specifically positioned the panels so they would not be shaded even on Dec 21'st.

I purchased 10amp rectifying diodes which are put in series with each set of panels. They are also fused.


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Mounted that close to the roof, you must live way down south where you don't get any snow . . . . . . . . .


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## MichaelK! (Oct 22, 2010)

Jim-mi said:


> Mounted that close to the roof, you must live way down south where you don't get any snow . . . . . . . . .


 The two 158 watt panels are at the edge of the porch roof. It is angled such that any snow would slide right off onto the ground 8 feet below.

I did two different configurations for the two sets of HF panels as an experiment. The set on the left is raised 12" off the porch roof so snow would slide off onto the porch roof. Set #2 on the right is flush with the roof top. Wanted to see if the extra "raiser" was worth the trouble, because I really expect almost no snow to accumulate.

The main cabin roof would deflect any snow at 90 degrees away from the panels, so I think it will be a non-issue. Time will tell.


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