Post your Ground Mount Setup: No questions or comments on the setup. (pictures only)

[TM48]

Ironridge recently expanded to 12.3 kw.

 

[NYCsolar]

I'm in the midst of getting materials and assembling the control panel with the inverter and such.. So here is my design for the solar array. I'm using Renogy 550w panels. The wooden frame will be mounted to ground screws in lieu of concrete foundations. The solar racking is adjustable as I wanted to be able to adjust seasonally. The racks are being fabricated by SolarRackworks.com in Albuquerque, and will be installed in upstate New York. I'm not a skilled DIY guy, so I wanted to keep the support frame very simple so that even I could do it!

 

[ChillnGrill]

Mine

 

[Bananaman321]

Thanks for the comments! Will be using Simpson ties and screws to connect the wood together. I'll add a diagonal to each in left/right. I'll try to alternate the orientation of the ground screws when they go in to improve rigidity--much appreciated!

Angle braces are important for rigidity in a structure without them the structure I built would crumble to the ground as it is only built with bedframe angler irons.
The angle braces make it solid as a rock I have been on top of this solar array it does not move.




Update: the solar arrays just rode out a hurricane I should have got it before picture they were about half covered in leaf confetti no damage.

 

[hdmax]

I have the eco-worthy solar tracker, but with super struts in order to install eight 250 watt bifacial panels. So far it's holding up.

 

[mikeenea]

42 585W Heliene bifacials on a Sinclair Ground Mount -- just finished it today.

 

[supersignman]

Here's my fence/ground mount that started out with 3,000W in vertical orientation... quickly realized that wasn't enough... re-did mount and went to 6,000W in horizontal orientation... then realized that wasn't enough... re-did mount again in a rigged up cantilevered configuration so I could fit 14,400W of panels on there. Finally enough for an Alabama summer! A/C is a good thing! When the forecast eventually calls for a hurricane coming my way though, there will be some additional bracing added.

 

[Lener]

Here it is ! not too pretty but I think I did an ok job A total of 32 @100 watt panels 12 of them are bifacial , since I needed two arrays for my 2 @5000W 48v Eco-worthy , I wired 20 ( 10 and 10 in series then and parallel for about 185 volts and the other 12 bifacial in parallel for about 220v, all in good sunny condition days in the north eastern PA…. I would welcome any suggestions

 

[EZPZ]

Array 1 of 3 from December last year

 

[EnergizerNate]

Today after mowing/weeding around my fusion radiation collectors. Only one tree was removed to install this array last year. Sunmodo ground mount. Highest point is 5 ft due to zoning code, so the tilt is about 10 deg. 8 more panels to install soon on the end (now that all the paperwork has gone through).

 

[BanjoTX]

Far West Texas adjustable ground mount.

 

[xy74]

Finished my cabin setup by adding the final 4 panels. JA Solar 295w panels used from Santan that seem to put out nameplate power, getting over 2400 watts output when the sun is in one of those blue areas.

 

[K&M]

This is my “temporary” setup to power our camper. This is 8 450w panels mounted on a 2x6 frame. Frame is bolted to two 4x4 pillars using 8” long 5/8” carriage bolts. I centered it so it is very well balanced and easy to tilt. I used 4 ratchet straps to keep it where I tilt it.

It is temporary though. It will be moved and scaled up when we build the house.

 

[MattMan119]

 

[DougfromdaUP]

This year's addition:

 

[kw5kw]

Welded 3" structural steel, forty Aptos 370w bifacial panels, four strings of ten.

 

[Chispas]

Our original mount for the cabin, welded up by me in 2006 to replace a lashed up wooden frame . Originally it was about 1 M higher & hinged at the base so I could mount the panel. The panel is a 160W 12 V that supplies juce to our nano system in the yurt, our summer hideaway & guest accommodation. It has a Victron PWM 30 A SCC , a 50 ah car battery & a 150 W Sterling Power sine wave inverter. The base of the original pole has been repurposed for our Satellite internet dish.

 

[BarracudaBob]

Schedule 80 pipe 4' down with 12" concrete sonotube

 

[Simersam2004]

27 235W used Trina panels. 3 stings of 9

 

[dkyork]

Lets keep this thread to member builds of their ground mount either home-made, store bought or Frankenstein.

No questions or comments on the setup, just members post their mounts only with details below. I want a thread where people can scroll through everyone's post/pictures and see what their setup is and get ideas what might work for them instead of searching for days at every thread. If you have questions or comment about a build, message the member directly. I (and probably other people too) just want to scroll down and see the setups. Just hit the Like button and that is all. Please no comments or questions.

Details of your ground mount system including some detail about your setup. EX. - total KW size of ground mount built for, overall dimensions, what size ground contact posts you used (PT, Poles, I-beam...) Costs to build and maybe a picture if you did something unique (single axis, adjustable, etc..), your location (Canada vs FL will have an impact on design), what manufacture you purchased from if store bought​

4-6 Picture of Overall ground mount completed, picture with some panels on but still being added so we can see the mounts/bracing under the panels, how it's anchored into ground (concrete, screw anchor, wires, etc..), picture behind the panels. pictures of how the vertical posts are connected to panel posts (some people use lags, u-bolts, etc..) We don't need overloaded with every single angle and every nut and bolt. This is just to give a "tease" so if someone likes your setup, we can message directly and get more information.

Thanks for playing!!

 

[Solar John]

For mounting, steel profiles/piles are used.

There are multiple ways to install them:

1. Ramming piles with a pile driver (used for large projects due to the quantity involved).
2. Digging holes and setting piles in concrete.
3. Ramming piles with a handheld tool (yes, there are hand ramming machines, but they require soft soil).
4. Screw piles (there are special mountings for ground screw piles, ideal for smaller projects and difficult terrain).

The main challenge with all these installation methods is precision.

For traditional south-facing solar mounts, you can allow a 4-6 cm margin of error for piles. However, for this type of mounting, only a 1-1.5 cm margin of error is acceptable because otherwise, the solar panels won't fit properly between the piles.

I’ve developed a new mounting system to eliminate this issue, but it still needs to be tested.

 

[TacticalTimmy]

 

[Buckeye ridge]

These are mounted on a limestone bluff, it has alot of limestone rocks that are shallow. Impossible to drill post holes. I'm trying different methods to see what i like best. I'm going to install at least one more array. I like these bright mount system so far.

 

[timselectric]

Here's my (temporary) ground mounted array. lol

 

[DavtheRav]

Here is my low profile mount to keep the wind forces down and the neighbors happy. Steel building 10" purlins were used and buried five feet with paint and tar coating. Material costs were about fifty dollars per post assembly and fifty dollars for the (2" by 9'6") horizontal mounting steel angle iron used in between each set of posts.