4 ms·
I work in solar, and your panel really, really, REALLY needs to be secured from wind. Luckily, they make ballast mounts that don't require screwing into the roo
by diafygi 9y ago
I work in solar, and your panel really, really, REALLY needs to be secured from wind. Luckily, they make ballast mounts that don't require screwing into the roof[1][2].
[1]: http://www.orionsolarracking.com/commercial-roof-mount/ballasted/ http://www.orionsolarracking.com/commercial-roof-mount/balla...
[2]: https://www.civicsolar.com/products/racking-mounting/application/Flat%20Roof%20-%20Ballast/manufacturer/orion-solar-racking-143/type/Ballast https://www.civicsolar.com/products/racking-mounting/applica...
- nikodunk 9y agoGot it! Thanks for the input. Damn that drives up cost, though. I'll work on securing it with weights and post an update.
- agumonkey 9y agoIf that thing catch up wind and fall you'll surely have to pay a lot more. It's surprisingly quick how wind can shift large surface like this.
- coltonv 9y agoFunny that we live in a world where one renewable energy source is powerful enough to (literally) blow away another.
- ilaksh 9y agoRight which is why I believe that after the coming consumer solar revolution there will be something similar with wind energy. Especially with newer VAWT designs and areas that have a lot of wind. They compliment each other so wind can continue producing at night.
- jsingleton 9y agoFor anyone curious, a VAWT is a Vertical-axis wind turbine (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_axis_wind_turbine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_axis_wind_turbine). I always thought these were less efficient than the conventional designs but they're clearly simpler.
- jononor 9y agoConventional designs struggle with low winds, gusty winds and winds coming from wrong direction. VAWT designs generally fare better with such non-ideal conditions, which are going to be common in residential sites.