How To Install Solar Panel System

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If you lot love exercise-it-yourself projects, you may be interested in installing (or even building) your own solar panels. However, unless you're a very skilled DIYer with aplenty experience in construction and electrical work, hire a professional installer to ready up the solar panel array y'all choose. In any case, existence knowledgeable about the pros and cons of rooftop and footing-based solar arrays, and having a general awareness of the proper mode to install panels, will serve you well as you make the switch to solar power.

1. 1

   Determine if there are legal restrictions for solar console placement. Don't risk having to tear downwards your newly-installed solar panels considering they run afoul of local municipal, edifice, or homeowner'south codes. Before grabbing your drill, do your homework on where you tin and cannot install solar panels.^[one]

   • If you have a homeowner's association or live in a historic district, for instance, there may be restrictions on placing rooftop solar panels.
   • Ground-mounted panels may need to exist out of public view, or a certain distance from your property line.
   • Installing solar panels may require a building permit where y'all alive.

2. 2

   Check the orientation, size, pitch, and shading of your roof. The ideal roof for a residential solar arrangement has 500 sq ft (46 g^two) of unobstructed, south-facing, unshaded space, sloped at a 30-caste pitch. Your roof probable doesn't meet this ideal, but that doesn't mean it's unsuitable for solar.^[2]

   • East- or westward-facing roof areas are okay, so long every bit they're not shaded by copse or other buildings.^[iii]
   • Roof pitches betwixt 15 and 40 degrees are manageable. If y'all have a flat roof, rent a professional installer to angle the support structure as needed.
   • 100 sq ft (9.three m²) of solar panel coverage produces around ane kilowatt (kW) of free energy on average, and the typical home requires around v kW. If necessary, you tin can install panels in multiple locations to achieve this corporeality.
   • Sometimes you can get effectually trees obstructing areas of the roof. However, it may be hard to install solar panels if your firm is surrounded by trees.^[iv]

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3. 3

   Assess the age and structural integrity of your roof. Properly-installed solar panels are typically expected to concluding 20-25 years, then make sure the roofing textile beneath the panel structure is fix to last that long. If yous have cobblestone shingles, for instance, you lot should replace them before or along with your solar installation.^[5]

   • Installed solar panels typically weigh around 2–4 lb (0.91–one.81 kg) per i sq ft (930 cm²), which—if the panels are installed properly so the load is evenly distributed—is typically manageable for a roof in expert status. Consult a structural engineer if you have any concerns almost your roof's capability to support solar panels.^[vi]

4. iv

   Opt for a ground placement if your roof isn't suitable. While rooftop placements are often the most user-friendly and least obtrusive choice, ground placements oft generate more electricity. If you have a lot of open, sunny space on your holding, for example, you may be able to build a solar array that's equally large every bit your budget allows.^[seven]

   • While y'all don't have to worry about climbing on the roof, basis-based panel installs still involve complicated anchoring and wiring tasks that require at to the lowest degree moderate DIY skills.

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1. 1

   Lay out the location of the roof stanchions on the shingles. Follow the installation guide for your solar panels to determine the right spacing for the stanchions. Use a measuring record and marker chalk to identify the position for each stanchion.^[8]

   • Information technology's vital that each stanchion is located direct to a higher place a roof rafter—rafters are the wood "ribs" that provide the shape and structural support for the roof.
   • With some experience, yous tin locate roof rafters beneath the shingles, flashing, and sheathing by tapping a hammer and listening for the deviation in sound. Otherwise, you tin can mensurate from protruding objects like chimneys or exhaust pipes, or drive several pilot nails through the roof and use their location to guide your measurements.
   • No part of this job is suitable for a novice. If yous're not fully confident about working on a roof and installing the solar panels correctly, rent a professional person installer!

2. 2

   Attach the stanchions by screwing them into the roof rafters below. Marker the locations for your pilot holes, then drill through the roof and into the rafters. Utilise the screws that come with the solar console kit to secure the stanchions in place.^[9]

   • Before securing them with screws, slide each stanchion nether the edge of the row of shingles above information technology. That style, water will shed over tiptop of the stanchions instead of getting underneath them.

3. 3

   Fasten the framework of aluminum rail to the stanchions with bolts. Many solar panel models use 3 parallel rows of aluminum rails to serve equally the framework for the panels. Follow your model's instructions for attaching these rails to the stanchions. This often involves using an impact commuter to secure the runway with stainless steel bolts.^[10]

   • After installing the rails and earlier installing the panels, check that the framework is "square" (even on all sides). Measure diagonally from corner to corner, both ways—if the measurements aren't the same, you'll demand to conform the framework.

4. 4

   Run electric conduit and wiring up to your solar panel assortment. This is a job best left to a professional electrician, unless y'all are very experienced with electrical work. The tubular conduit, made of plastic or metal, protects the electrical wiring inside it from the elements.^[11]

   • This wiring will need to run to both a new electric meter (to rail the electricity you draw from or produce for the electric grid) and a new electrical sub-panel. Depending on where yous alive, a government building code enforcement officer may be required to audit and approve the piece of work.

5. 5

   Install a micro-inverter and grounding wire for each solar console. Each panel in your solar array should have its own micro-inverter. This essentially creates a parallel rather than series circuit, meaning the whole system won't break down if one panel stops functioning. Follow your solar setup'due south instructions (or rent an electrician) to hook up an inverter to the framework below where each solar panel volition become.^[12]

   • Brand certain that, along with the electrical wiring, each micro-inverter is connected to a 6-gauge, bare copper ground wire. Without proper grounding, the panels volition be a burn down hazard if struck by lightning.

6. 6

   Secure each panel in place with the provided retaining clips. One at a time, carefully lower each solar console onto the stanchions in its intended spot. Snap the wiring plug from the micro-inverter into the underside of the console. Then, screw the retaining clips that are attached to the edges of the panel to the aluminum runway.^[13]

   • Once the final wiring connections are made, your solar panels will be gear up to start producing electricity!

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1. 1

   Install a stock-still ground mount for the lowest upfront cost. With a standard ground mount, a serial of metal rods are driven into the basis to secure the console structure in place. Concrete footings typically aren't required, which helps to reduce the cost and installation time.^[fourteen]

   • If you're interested in doing the chore yourself, contact solar retailers to see if they sell DIY installation packages.
   • Instead of using metal rods, some other advanced DIY approach involves pouring concrete footings and attaching a framework of 4 in × 4 in (10 cm × ten cm) dimensional lumber. So, bending brackets are used to attach the panel supports and solar panels.^[15]

2. two

   Use a pole-mounted footing installation to enable solar tracking. With this installation, a single metal pole is secured into the ground with a physical basis. A pin point at the top of the pole allows the solar panel array to move and track the positioning of the sun throughout the day.^[16]

   • Tracking the sun'south position in the heaven maximizes electricity production.
   • Well-nigh tracking systems use sensors and the power generated past the panels to operate automatically.
   • This blazon of installation is best left to professionals or skilled DIYers with experience helping with solar installs.

3. iii

   Upgrade to a pole-mount with dual-axis tracking for max solar capture. Dual-admission tracking enables the solar panel array to follow the dominicus across the heaven during the day, likewise as to adjust its angle to conform the sunday'southward position at different times of the year. In a sunny location, this basically maxes out the amount of solar energy you tin can produce per panel.^[17]

   • This installation is another step up in complexity from a single-axis pole-mount, then it'due south best left to the professionals.

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Add New Question

• Question

  How exercise I know if my roof is suitable for solar panels?

  

  Guy Gabay is a Solar Energy Contractor and the CEO of AmeriGreen Builders, a full-service solar energy, covering, HVAC and window installation visitor based in the greater Los Angeles, California region. With over eight years of experience in the construction industry, Guy leads the AmeriGreen squad focusing on bringing an educational approach to energy efficient home upgrades. Guy holds a B.Due south. in Marketing from California State University - Northridge.

  

  Solar Energy Contractor

  Expert Answer

  Your roof has to have skillful sunday exposure, and then it can't be surrounded by trees. Y'all'll besides want to check the condition of your existing roof. If your roof needs to be replaced, the surface area where the solar panels will be placed may be eligible for a federal tax credit.

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• Improperly installed rooftop solar panels may allow h2o infiltration or compromise the structural integrity of your roof. Poorly wired solar panels, whether on the roof or on the basis, tin be a fire chance.

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Things Y'all'll Need

• Solar console assortment installation bundle with detailed instructions
• Power drill
• Screwdriver
• Impact driver
• Tape measure out
• Chalk

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