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diy solar

diy solar

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

Here are mine in the photos-sono tubes with cement tubes up a bit with galvo steel brackets. I have used this system with my fence for over 25 years now with xero issues so I did the same with the ground mounts -see photos here
 
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Here are some photos of my Integra Rack 30 ballested installation. This is the first row of two each with 18 panels. Due to bedrock\huge granite boulders, I could not actually level the ground. I cleared and brought in some sand. You can see that I stair stepped the panels as they went up hill. Not perfect but will meet my needs.

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This is an off-grid system we built at TAFE with my students. 8 kW peak, MPP Solar 11 kW inverter, ~4 kWh 48 V LFP battery.
Simple steel structure with C-purlins concreted in the ground, and standard aluminium extrusions for mounting the panels.
 

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Here's my newest semi-movable mount for my 400W Hyperion bifacial panels. And a photo with my original smaller mounts (See how after only one winter season, the one with untreated wood, but lightly sprayed with treatment, looks very weathered while the PT wood one still looks brand new). Only now is it obvious to me that in such a tight urban environment I should have made the originals at least 6 feet tall as well, considering every inch taller means more time in the sun.

The one annoyance is adjusting the angle requires two people - or at least with the heaviness of the bifacial panel it feels a bit uncomfortable and risky to move the angling arms to a new bolt position - so it's a little bit more intensive to experiment angle wise.

I'll be making a second one to go beside it, the same way or with some old chain link posts I have lying around, but I like the aesthetics of the wood one enough I may pay the extra material costs do it the same. The tiers may become shelves as well.

Looking at the Victron MPPT logs, the Hyperion reached 405 watts (edit: 475 watts!) for a few minutes on a very stormy day. It must have cleared up briefly, but it seems to be a good sign.

Mount Completed.jpgMount with small Mounts.jpgBonsai and Mount.jpg
 
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Solar/lawnmower/ATV shack with 6 panels/2400w to start with now. Room at top for another 2 panels which will add another 800w. I could also add framing to three sides and skirt this little pole barn with 8 more panels, so potentially will have over 6kw there one day.
 

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Yea no roof mount thread. Not mine but had to share. I was drooling driving by. ;) I counted 26x37 individual rectangles assuming each one is a single panel Looks like 962 panels unless they are some commercial panel where 2 make 1 panel for 481 panels. Not sure :unsure: Hell of an array.
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Just a guess: 27 panels high, by 50 panels long = 1350 panels. If 400W panels, that's 540kW of panel. Approx 3.24mWh per day, on a good day.

Here's another angle of my 2400W of panel. I have 8 more 100W panels to put together. I have room for another 1600W of panel if I choose to do so. (need to clean up that pile of limbs, and cut down that old half dead pecan tree)IMG_20250405_132247_104.jpg
 
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This is the system I installed at the end of 24. Went active on the grid in January so I don’t have a lot of performance data but my March bill was a credit. It consists of 2 arrays with a total of 48-500w bi-facial panels using 24 dual input 800w Hoymiles micro inverters. It clips at about 18kw so I may readdress those micros. Anchored to the ground with 36 - 60” ground screws. So far Missouri weather has been decent without too many overcast days. I sized the system to cancel my annual bill.
 
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This was my first little array. Still in use. Gathered the panels cheaply over 8-9 months from FB Marketplace and other local selling sites. Same brand/specs. Does surprisingly well on a little 24v AIO.

This summer two additional & much larger ground arrays are ready to be installed to attach to a 6000xp. You really can do ground arrays in suburbia and still have some backyard left for other purposes!
 

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My setup is very tiny compared to most here, but it is very unique. I’ve got four 150 watt panels running my off grid shed/workshop. They go to a big EPEver Tracer charge controller, then to a 560 amp/hr lithium battery bank and to a 2k pure sine wave power inverter. What makes my setup unique is the panels are mounted on the south facing wall on the 20’X20’ shed, but the mount has 3 hinges that allow the whole thing to rotate completely vertical. I built it like this due to the rather common hail storms that come through here. But the storms always come from the west, northwest, or north so with the mount lowered the panels are 100% protected.

Yes, the mount is made out of wood, and yes, the front support 2X4 has warped. IMG_4781.jpeg
 

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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!!
 

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My array, just hauled and had installed the skyrack trusses before the snow really started to fall in middle pic.

32 Boviet 450 watt bifacials on Sinclair skyrack 2.0
 

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