Groundmount panel layout strategy 4 x p2s4 on 2 mpp lv6548 inverters

Hi,
I live at 54 degrees latitude.
My system will be 120/240 volts provided by parallel MPP LV6548 inverters.
I've purchased 32 x 445w Seraphim panels and plan to string them 2p4s on each of the 4 inverter mppt.
The area where I'm installing the panels has no shade.
My question is this:
Should I angle 8 panels to the SE and 8 panels to the SW.
To other 16 to the south.
Is there any value in doing something like that?

Gib said:

Hi,
I live at 54 degrees latitude.
My system will be 120/240 volts provided by parallel MPP LV6548 inverters.
I've purchased 32 x 445w Seraphim panels and plan to string them 2p4s on each of the 4 inverter mppt.
The area where I'm installing the panels has no shade.
My question is this:
Should I angle 8 panels to the SE and 8 panels to the SW.
To other 16 to the south.
Is there any value in doing something like that?

Click to expand...

It will generate LESS total energy for the day, but you would get more earlier and more later with less in the middle.

You can simulate the 3 arrays on https://pvwatts.nrel.gov/ for your exact location and compare to a single 32 panel array.

Thanks! I think I'll face them all south.
Great site, it shows the big drop off in winter kw.
It's a good thing we're connected to the grid. We would be cold and in the dark for 4 months of the year with the system we're buying.

My strategy was to utilize rotating mounts, that have worked very well for me. I have my panels wired in 4S (1000W each), with at total of 5 parallel arrays. I can rotate them east in the very early morning, or west in the late afternoon. I can make 2000+W at 7:30am this way. These mounts are non-motorized (I'm the motor). I go out and rotate them by hand. They can also be adjusted seasonally, for summer to winter angles.

I like your design? Nicely done. I can't tell from the picture how you lock in the panel tilt angle.
Do you have a materials list that I could use? Size, gauge and type of strut?
Did you use spring nuts for the panels?

OK, I was sort of cheating here. I took these pics because the lighting was good, but before the array was 100% finished. Here is another pic of one of my single-row arrays where you can clearly see the angling struts. Exactly the same strut arrangement is used for the dual-row struts.

Here is a parts list.

T-bar
3.5" schedule 40 pipe, 8' long, sunk in concrete
4.0" schedule 40 pipe, 4' long, with a 4" square 3/16" steel cap welded on top. That pipe sits on top of the 3.5" pipe.
On top of the steel cap, two pieces of full-channel unistut 48" long are welded to the cap to make the top of the T.
Two 5' pieces of half-channel unistrut welded to the tips of the T and base of the 4.0" pipe to prevent flexing.
The angle strut anchoring bolts are just 1/4" bolts welding so they are sticking out perpendicular to the frame.

array frame
4-10' full-channel unistruts, vertically oriented
2-5' full-channel unistruts, perpendicular to the vertical members, and welded to them.
All diagonal re-enforcing members are half-channel unistrut, and also the trusses on the back. Seven 10' lengths.
All steel contact points are re-enforced with steel earthquake anchors used in wood construction.
All the trusses on the back of the frame start as one length of unistut. I cut a notch in them, bend them to the correct angle, then weld them into place .

The array frame is attached to the T-bar with steel door hinges. This makes placement much easier. You can heft up the T-bar, then position the array frame on top of it, and then bolt the two in place.

That's great Michael!
Your design would allow us to tilt down to the steep angle that would work best in mid winter. It looks strong. I'd be confident it could handle the winds. I know it would be easy to add actuators to it if I want to automatically or remotely adjust the tilt or direction. That would be a good diy project for later.
Thanks for sharing your design and material list! This really helps me.

Gib said:

I know it would be easy to add actuators to it if I want to automatically or remotely adjust the tilt or direction. That would be a good diy project for later.
Thanks for sharing your design and material list! This really helps me.

Click to expand...

What I saw in one person's design is that they added a trailer tongue wheel cartridge, with the end mounted to the frame instead of a little wheel. By cranking the handle, you rock the frame back and forth.

That would make it quick and easy to adjust the tilt. Good idea!
What kind of brackets did you use to attach the solar panels to the table unistrut?
4 brackets per panel good enough?

Gib said:

What kind of brackets did you use to attach the solar panels to the table unistrut?
4 brackets per panel good enough?

Click to expand...

While building the unistrut frames, I positioned them such that they could be bolted on the frames via the holes already drilled on the backs of the solar edging. I then just used extra-large carriage washers on the bolts.