Does anyone have experience with DIY Solar panel fabrication and installation? Particularly “Home made Energy” How to video and text instruction.
Discussion Forum
Discussion Forum
Up Next
Video Shorts
Featured Story
Learning more about accommodating neurodivergence in the trades can help grow a much-needed workforce.
Featured Video
Highlights
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Replies
Go here
http://www.builditsolar.com
Assume you are referring to solar thermal domestic hot water or hydronic heat type systems? (as opposed to PV or active solar air systems).
Seems to me someone with decent sweating skills (i.e. copper pipe) and some attention to details could fabricate water heaters. As with many things, it's the details that count and that is why we pay the big bucks for commercially made products ... because they know how to do it better.
I think the big issues are in the box. It has to be structurally sound, able to hold a piece of glass in place and weather the weather. The box has to be able to be mounted in a fasion on some kind of rack. Conceptually, this is relatively straight forward. However, from a construction standpoint, it's a bit more. The details are critical for success and this isn't real common.
Can you do it? I think it's definately possible. But you need to put in a lot of thinking about how it will actually come together ... lest you end up with a Homer Simpson shop project ... DOH!!
I've been thinking about it myself, but haven't sat down to follow through with this.
Assume you are referring to solar thermal domestic hot water or hydronic heat type systems? (as opposed to PV or active solar air systems).
Seems to me someone with decent sweating skills (i.e. copper pipe) and some attention to details could fabricate water heaters. As with many things, it's the details that count and that is why we pay the big bucks for commercially made products ... because they know how to do it better.
I think the big issues are in the box. It has to be structurally sound, able to hold a piece of glass in place and weather the weather. The box has to be able to be mounted in a fasion on some kind of rack. Conceptually, this is relatively straight forward. However, from a construction standpoint, it's a bit more. The details are critical for success and this isn't real common.
Can you do it? I think it's definately possible. But you need to put in a lot of thinking about how it will actually come together ... lest you end up with a Homer Simpson shop project ... DOH!!
I've been thinking about it myself, but haven't sat down to follow through with this.
Assume you are referring to solar thermal domestic hot water or hydronic heat type systems? (as opposed to PV or active solar air systems).
Seems to me someone with decent sweating skills (i.e. copper pipe) and some attention to details could fabricate water heaters. As with many things, it's the details that count and that is why we pay the big bucks for commercially made products ... because they know how to do it better.
I think the big issues are in the box. It has to be structurally sound, able to hold a piece of glass in place and weather the weather. The box has to be able to be mounted in a fasion on some kind of rack. Conceptually, this is relatively straight forward. However, from a construction standpoint, it's a bit more. The details are critical for success and this isn't real common.
Can you do it? I think it's definately possible. But you need to put in a lot of thinking about how it will actually come together ... lest you end up with a Homer Simpson shop project ... DOH!!
I've been thinking about it myself, but haven't sat down to follow through with this.
Assume you are referring to
not sure why it duplicated ... connection problems
Hi,
Its not clear to me whether you are talking about building PV (solar electric) panels, or solar thermal (heating) panels.
People do manage to build solar PV panels. The ones I've talked to say that it was a rewarding educational experience, but not something they would do if they wanted a PV system large enough to supply much of their power needs. Most of the $50 guides out there are scams. I've assembled several good and detailed links to instructions on how to build PV panels here: http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/PV/pv.htm#MakePV
If you are talking about building solar air or water heating panels, lots of people have done this successfully. You can build a good water heating panel for about $5.50 a sqft compared to $30 a sqft -- performance is nearly the same if you do a careful job.
There are a bunch of DIY collector and system designs here:
http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/SpaceHeating/Space_Heating.htm and http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/WaterHeating/water_heating.htm
I suppose I'm a big prejudiced about this, but one of my favorite designs is the $1K system. This is a drain back design I've been working on for several years. Its very simple, and can be built with local materials. It uses a large, inexpensive, non-pressurized storage tank. The collector and tank are easy to make. The heat exchanger is a 300 ft coil of 1 inch PEX, which makes for a near 100% efficient heat exchanger. It has worked well through several of our well below zero winter temps, and provided high solar fractions right through the winter. http://www.builditsolar.com/Experimental/PEXColDHW/Overview.htm
Lots of others have now built the same system, and some have sent in details: http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/WaterHeating/water_heating.htm#Example1KSystems Some have increased the collector area to hundreds of sqft and use the systems for both domestic water heating as space heating.
My feeling is that this kind of system could be done as a part of new construction by the same carpenter/plumber crew that are doing the base house construction, and come in much lower in cost than commercial systems.
Gary
I've never EVER heard of anyone building their own PV panels ... WOW. I have heard of them building their own PV systems, though ... using panels made by a company that has the resources to grow polycrystaline and combine it w/ other materials to make a panel that generates electricity.
I built parts of this at home in my garage....akbout $50K worth of 4 layer cells though....
http://gltrs.grc.nasa.gov/reports/2004/TM-2004-213361.pdf
Most anything is possible DIY if you dont go way back to include mining the raw minerals<G>