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diy solar

any fix for shattered glass?

Jims94vmx

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May 23, 2020
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1 of the 4 180w Bougerv panels came shattered. They were going to ship me a new one but having shipping problems with covid....so they offered a refund (which I will gladly take). Is there a safe way using some sort of resin or clear epoxy that anyone has used successfully? And would you mount that panel to your rv?

Hightec shows similar specs in a 180 or 200w panel......was thinking of using refund for 1 of these.....

Thoughts.

Jim

PS the Bougerv panels have been overperforming.......oh well...
 
No experience replacing/substituting for glass, but I might prefer to run on three panels until the 4th matching one can arrive, especially if they are just right for your install. While it’s not unheard of for panels to overproduce when new, it‘s also common to get less-than-advertised results. It sounds like you’re on to something good... might be worth the delay if you can tolerate it.
 
Human hands assembled the panel, glass and frame. Why can't you disasemble and replace the glass. Might be expencive to score a tempered glass panel in the right size.
 
For standard house panels the cost of repair exceeds the replacement wholesale cost.
Those epoxy fixes on youtube look promising until you go along to your local hardware store and price the stuff.

An epoxy covering without the usual fibreglass reinforcement could be ok for home use but not strong enough for RV's.

The glass and backing on the panel is baked on at high temperatures which makes the removal process difficult.
 
Epoxy is very tough. Easily stronger and more durable than any original glass (it would not shatter). It is commonly used on floors, and with even a thin layer properly applied it is stronger in many ways than wood. I've used it to reinforce compromised ply by diluting it with xylene and letting it soak into the ply.. Concerning a RV roof mounted solar panel, really your only concern is that the whole "sheet" of epoxy doesn't somehow separate from the frame. Although this is unlikely, it is the only difference between the epoxy sheet and the glass sheet. The epoxy sheet if it somehow broke away would likely do so in a solid sheet, whereas any glass would likely shatter. I'm not sure how big the panel is, but if you're looking at making a quick repair job to an existing glass panel that is shattered but still functioning.. I guess you could.. paint it on thick and run some sort of support straps across the panel every so inches, embed the straps in between the first and second layers of epoxy.. won't go anywhere. If you're looking at removing the existing glass and "pouring" a new layer of clear epoxy, that's what I would recommend as you won't get glass chips shifting around cutting up your solar works.

For that: remove the frame, remove the glass, build up the edges with painters tape, pour a reasonable amount of epoxy in the center of your panel, and spread it out to a thick coat using a chip brush. If you're going to apply a second coat, you wait about 8 to 16 hours (on a medium speed epoxy, recommended) and then you apply the second coat. The first coat should be set up, but still a little tacky, this way they will bond together. You want it all bonded, and the only other way to make a second coat bond to a 1st that's dry is to sand the 1st. After you're applied, I guess you put your frame back on and I guess you're good to go, make sure your frame is snug against the epoxy, but that's a sheet of hardened glue.. not going anywhere. Good UV properties too iirc.

As for sourcing your epoxy, there's a place called ill street composites. That's what we've used. Excellent epoxy.

Word of advise. For a single solar panel you likely need no more than a quart..

When you're mixing your resin and hardener.. do NOT add more hardener than resin.. If you are going to err.. err on the +resin side. If you add even a little bit too much hardener, or you don't properly mix it, that stuff can start superheating, SMOKING and hardening in minutes into a globby mess. The process works on compounding heat so you want it to have surface area while it cures. don't leave cups of the mixed stuff lying around.

I know people put glass panels on rv's, but the ones on mine have a plastic..plexiglass sort of material. I'm comfortable with that, and I would be just as comfortable with epoxy, but far less comfortable with glass, fyi.
 
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