Here are the details of my 24 x400 9600 watt jinko panel system.
I started with a solar assessment tool for the site Its a handy device loaned out from a local energy supplier. Our side hill was a perfect south facing site. Due to the slope I also slanted it a bit to the west a few degrees. We dug the piers in May 2020 during the early pandemic times. I both the Pressure treated 2x8s 2x6 and 2x4 and 4x4 and 4x8 post and beams. I ordered mots components online -the galvanized hardware and stainless and brass stiff from McMaster Carr-one of the best suppliers I deal with for odd and normal stuff in all metals. I ordered 20 foot uni struts from Zorro as I had a 20% off coupon.The zero stuff showed up a a few days. A few things from Home depot online as well like a case of super strut spring loaded connector bolts to hold panels from below to the struts. I adapted see you tube videos on ground mounts. The huge 12 -15 inch long Ubolts where bought online from a auto parts supplier.I designed this to make it thru our earthquake loads and wind events. The concrete piers are about 3 feet deep and the galvanized simpson strong tie brackets from out local lumber store (no big box stores around here) are wired to rebar into the pour holes.Those holes we dug with hole power digger my neighbor had. I figured the super strut span weight load and started work. I finished rough out in wood and metal by early June and rented a trencher as the Sol arc is in a small outbuilding 100 feet away from array . I dug about 600 feet of trenches and put in spare plumping and electric conduit to well and some other locations. I needed spare wires to out pump house and an extra main schedule 80 line for water as well. I used our rototiller with a wooden plow on front to backfill all trenches . I also wire tracer wire in those trenches as it took me a long time pre digging to find all my old service I dug in back in 1982. I did not want to cut any power or water lines and did not.
I was doing some other jobs that summer like new boat bottom paint (real fun work) and installed the system over time-like hanging the Sol arc and pulling wires and setting ups a 250 # Kilovolt 7.5kw battery. By late fall I was ready to commission the system on November 3rd 2020.
Here are some photos of the build-I hid the whole thing from street view as I;m a solar pirate-hence the nice cedar fence to nowhere . The rack is strong as a ox an has been thru two quakes so far. No hardware is above panels as they are connected underneath to the spring loaded super struts via this spring clamps and a stainless bold. I did run #8 grand wire and hit each panel to a ground rod at under the system . I used some clamps from home depot on the panel connection to grind wire if I recall and used lanacote for all dissimilar metal connections as usual.I used a metal chop saw to cut the superstrut and painted all cuts.
In March covered it and I unwired the whole system and installed Tigi TS4-A-O optimizers . I dug anther trench fro the data cabled weed a CCA to communicate with the web via the tab mounted in the array. . The optimizers are working but I have yet to commission the app/syatem as I'm pondering the shut off when the power is out.I have it wired to a circuit that our generator does not energize when the power goes out (had they system for 10 years now)I need to rewire that outbuilding feed 1st before I commission that system . I;m back feeding the sol arc power thru a 100 amp sub panel to out main 200 rpm house panel about 150 feet away.Hope this makes sense.
A few other details I ordered the Sol-Arc from Alt-e on the spring sale as they have a west coast warehouse 3 hours south of us in Ukiah Ca. I shipped it low cost the KiloVault HAB 7.5 48V 150A-H battery is 250 lbs so we picked it up on a trip south for other items for no ship cost.
This battery went belly up over the 1st winter (the screen went blank) battery still worked I did some R&D for them and they shipped new internal cable but that did not fix the issue so in the spring they replaced that battery (they trucked it out) and sent me another new version model HAB3 and I bought another and got free freight on two shipped to us. So that gave us 15Kw total backup. Speaking of this our energy here is about 17-19kw a day avg with my pottery business and well pumping. These batteries carry us thru the 5-8 pm high power cost and thru the night until the late am and beyond .I'm thinking about adding another but am on the fence.
I started with a solar assessment tool for the site Its a handy device loaned out from a local energy supplier. Our side hill was a perfect south facing site. Due to the slope I also slanted it a bit to the west a few degrees. We dug the piers in May 2020 during the early pandemic times. I both the Pressure treated 2x8s 2x6 and 2x4 and 4x4 and 4x8 post and beams. I ordered mots components online -the galvanized hardware and stainless and brass stiff from McMaster Carr-one of the best suppliers I deal with for odd and normal stuff in all metals. I ordered 20 foot uni struts from Zorro as I had a 20% off coupon.The zero stuff showed up a a few days. A few things from Home depot online as well like a case of super strut spring loaded connector bolts to hold panels from below to the struts. I adapted see you tube videos on ground mounts. The huge 12 -15 inch long Ubolts where bought online from a auto parts supplier.I designed this to make it thru our earthquake loads and wind events. The concrete piers are about 3 feet deep and the galvanized simpson strong tie brackets from out local lumber store (no big box stores around here) are wired to rebar into the pour holes.Those holes we dug with hole power digger my neighbor had. I figured the super strut span weight load and started work. I finished rough out in wood and metal by early June and rented a trencher as the Sol arc is in a small outbuilding 100 feet away from array . I dug about 600 feet of trenches and put in spare plumping and electric conduit to well and some other locations. I needed spare wires to out pump house and an extra main schedule 80 line for water as well. I used our rototiller with a wooden plow on front to backfill all trenches . I also wire tracer wire in those trenches as it took me a long time pre digging to find all my old service I dug in back in 1982. I did not want to cut any power or water lines and did not.
I was doing some other jobs that summer like new boat bottom paint (real fun work) and installed the system over time-like hanging the Sol arc and pulling wires and setting ups a 250 # Kilovolt 7.5kw battery. By late fall I was ready to commission the system on November 3rd 2020.
Here are some photos of the build-I hid the whole thing from street view as I;m a solar pirate-hence the nice cedar fence to nowhere . The rack is strong as a ox an has been thru two quakes so far. No hardware is above panels as they are connected underneath to the spring loaded super struts via this spring clamps and a stainless bold. I did run #8 grand wire and hit each panel to a ground rod at under the system . I used some clamps from home depot on the panel connection to grind wire if I recall and used lanacote for all dissimilar metal connections as usual.I used a metal chop saw to cut the superstrut and painted all cuts.
In March covered it and I unwired the whole system and installed Tigi TS4-A-O optimizers . I dug anther trench fro the data cabled weed a CCA to communicate with the web via the tab mounted in the array. . The optimizers are working but I have yet to commission the app/syatem as I'm pondering the shut off when the power is out.I have it wired to a circuit that our generator does not energize when the power goes out (had they system for 10 years now)I need to rewire that outbuilding feed 1st before I commission that system . I;m back feeding the sol arc power thru a 100 amp sub panel to out main 200 rpm house panel about 150 feet away.Hope this makes sense.
A few other details I ordered the Sol-Arc from Alt-e on the spring sale as they have a west coast warehouse 3 hours south of us in Ukiah Ca. I shipped it low cost the KiloVault HAB 7.5 48V 150A-H battery is 250 lbs so we picked it up on a trip south for other items for no ship cost.
This battery went belly up over the 1st winter (the screen went blank) battery still worked I did some R&D for them and they shipped new internal cable but that did not fix the issue so in the spring they replaced that battery (they trucked it out) and sent me another new version model HAB3 and I bought another and got free freight on two shipped to us. So that gave us 15Kw total backup. Speaking of this our energy here is about 17-19kw a day avg with my pottery business and well pumping. These batteries carry us thru the 5-8 pm high power cost and thru the night until the late am and beyond .I'm thinking about adding another but am on the fence.
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