Panels Not installed on roof ???

[StanMI]

Had anyone had panels 8nstalled in ANY location other then the roof ??

I have a home with very little southern roof exposure but we live on 10 acres. I was thinking of creating a rack (or something) for the panels.

Does that sound doable or any suggestions?

Would Tesla do the install ??

 

[jjrandorin]

People do ground mount PV systems all the time, but I dont know if TESLA themselves does that. You should be able to get a third party to quote you on it however. As long as you dont have any sort of HOA where you are, there shouldnt be any other concern if you have the space and lack of shading in the area you want to install in.

HOAs generally prevent ground mounted PV, and i dont know if tesla itself is in that business however, so be prepared to go third party.

 

[zƬesla]

Mine are pole-mounted (see profile photo), however not by Tesla. You can go the DIY route on mounts, or look at Home - MT Solar for a ground- or pole-mounted solution.

 

[jboy210]

Had anyone had panels 8nstalled in ANY location other then the roof ??

I have a home with very little southern roof exposure but we live on 10 acres. I was thinking of creating a rack (or something) for the panels.

Does that sound doable or any suggestions?

Would Tesla do the install ??

Definitely doable. Wish I had the land to have the option. Especially after watching videos on people's ground-based setups.

But not sure Tesla would want to do it.

 

[bob_p]

To increase our system beyond the 44 panels they could fit in good locations on our roof, our 3rd party installer asked if we'd be interested in adding any structures - such as a car port or cover over our back patio - where they could add more panels.

We decided against that and stayed with panels only on our roof.

 

[holeydonut]

If you're doing ground-mount you can get some really cool tech. But I don't think Tesla will install these. It's worth asking them though.

Solar Trackers:
Solar Tracker | AllEarth Solar

Since you're in Michigan you'll also benefit from these being able to rest vertically to keep snow off, and they can also go flat in case of high winds.

 

[BGbreeder]

Be aware that in some jurisdictions, ground mounts require individual sign off by a professional engineer for each installation, which can add substantially to the cost. (Wind, electrical, etc.)

It would have increased our costs by over 50%, but YMMV. That was partially engineering, and partially extra deep trench due to the high DC voltage.

All the best,

BG

 

[jjrandorin]

If you're doing ground-mount you can get some really cool tech. But I don't think Tesla will install these. It's worth asking them though.

Solar Trackers:
Solar Tracker | AllEarth Solar

Since you're in Michigan you'll also benefit from these being able to rest vertically to keep snow off, and they can also go flat in case of high winds.

My dream would be to be able to build a home somewhere, and have some land on it that I could have a ground mounted tracking solar PV system like that,. I havent even researched if the extra power it would generate is worth the extra cost I am sure it has... its just cool and my dream installation of PV, along with a bunch of powerwall batteries. Still grid tied, but basically fully self sustained from an electrical point of view.

Right now, its just a dream, but maybe one day .....

 

[nwdiver]

I havent even researched if the extra power it would generate is worth the extra cost I am sure it has...

It's not even close these days. The only reason to have a tracking system is if you're space constrained and want to squeeze more kWh out of limited space. Panels are crazy cheap now.

 

[zƬesla]

I was discouraged from getting a tracker when we installed our pole mounts because of poor reliability and my wanting something mostly maintenance free. There is an easy-to-use crank that allows 1-axis (vertical) movement providing a little extra power to be eeked out by changing panel position a few times a year.

 

[holeydonut]

It's not even close these days. The only reason to have a tracking system is if you're space constrained and want to squeeze more kWh out of limited space. Panels are crazy cheap now.

But the Michigan winters and snow man... who wants to walk out to their solar array to de-ice the lake effect snow pack when the wind chill is -20F outside.

PS. I used to live in Michigan and moved to California because it was way the heck too cold up there.

 

[wjgjr]

But the Michigan winters and snow man... who wants to walk out to their solar array to de-ice the lake effect snow pack when the wind chill is -20F outside.

PS. I used to live in Michigan and moved to California because it was way the heck too cold up there.

As a former Michigander, I agree with the cold, though the snow really depends on where you are - wasn't too bad in southeast Michigan. (Biggest snowstorm I've ever experienced was in MD, not MI.) That said, the at least Michigan rarely has big forest fires or earthquakes, and is in no danger of running out of fresh water. And northern Michigan in the summer is amazing.

 

[zƬesla]

I'm hoping with the panels at a 70-degree winter down angle, snow shedding won't be an issue. If anything, I might have to shovel a little below the bottom edge if we have our usual 3'+ on the ground.

 

[charlesj]

... and partially extra deep trench due to the high DC voltage.

All the best,

BG

Just wondering if that deep trench would be different for 240 AC off of micro inverters on panel.
Or the same depth as for DC.

 

[charlesj]

I'm hoping with the panels at a 70-degree winter down angle, snow shedding won't be an issue. If anything, I might have to shovel a little below the bottom edge if we have our usual 3'+ on the ground.

Oh, this will be your first year into winter for the setup?
Ground level snow moving is easier than overhead on panels.

 

[nwdiver]

Just wondering if that deep trench would be different for 240 AC off of micro inverters on panel.
Or the same depth as for DC.

It's the same. Everything <600v is treated the same. The only thing micro-inverters gets you is more expensive equipment and increased line losses due to lower voltage => higher current.

 

[zƬesla]

Oh, this will be your first year into winter for the setup?
Ground level snow moving is easier than overhead on panels.

Yup, first year. Gotta track a ways through the backyard to get there though. Shouldn’t be an issue, if at all, until at least mid-winter anyway.

 

[BGbreeder]

Due to the distance involved, there was talk of being at or above 600VDC to reduce transmission losses. That lead to deep trenches. There was also a risk of hitting bedrock for some of the trenches at that depth. ($$$)

As I mentioned, it was a hypothetical plan that didn't pencil out, largely due to the cheap panel prices.

With more electric vehicles, we might revisit the idea, but we have learned from the process and would probably feed a second meter that is "bonded" with our home meter. It is a PG&E option. Basically, we would get credit for power pushed in at one meter, but used at the second. Saves running lots of underground wire in difficult terrain. Functionally, it goes up one power pole, over one, and comes back down. We are unlikely to do a ground mount, as it is simpler/cheaper to build a building and use the roof for solar due to the aforementioned engineering costs.

I hope that this helps.

All the best,

BG

 

[miimura]

Due to the distance involved, there was talk of being at or above 600VDC to reduce transmission losses. That lead to deep trenches. There was also a risk of hitting bedrock for some of the trenches at that depth. ($$$)

As I mentioned, it was a hypothetical plan that didn't pencil out, largely due to the cheap panel prices.

With more electric vehicles, we might revisit the idea, but we have learned from the process and would probably feed a second meter that is "bonded" with our home meter. It is a PG&E option. Basically, we would get credit for power pushed in at one meter, but used at the second. Saves running lots of underground wire in difficult terrain. Functionally, it goes up one power pole, over one, and comes back down. We are unlikely to do a ground mount, as it is simpler/cheaper to build a building and use the roof for solar due to the aforementioned engineering costs.

The PG&E scheme you are describing is called Net Metering Aggregation. If you have more than one meter on the same property or adjacent properties tied to the same customer, you can divide up the generation among the meters to offset their usage and costs. However, if you have to pay for a new service on the other side of your property just to take advantage of this, you may not come out ahead financially due to the cost of installing the new service. It would probably be most cost effective to add an extra panel or two to compensate for the longer power line losses between the array and the existing meter.

I can also imagine that a steel prefab outbuilding with a single south facing roof plane could be about the same cost as all the ground mount hardware and trenching. Of course, you would still have to get the electrical to the outbuilding.

 

[shutthebox]

I'm in the process of buying a house that has Solar City/Telsa panels on the roof. This house was previously under contract and their home inspection revealed that the solar panel install caused the roof to leak and mold in the attic, then on top of that there is a recall on the roofing shingles so those are getting replaced too. So those buyers dropped out as it was going to take a few months to sort out the warranty issues between two companies. But now that those are on track to be fixed, I saw this as an opportunity to move the roof mounted system to a ground mounted system. It avoids any possibility of the install being done wrong again, and the panels would be easier to keep clean, and expand on in the future.

I was hoping Telsa would reduce the buyout price of the lease contract in exchange for not having to mount them back on the roof. But there only response to all this was that "they don't install ground mounted systems anymore". Essentially it'd be too difficult to redo the contract and warranty replacement for what I tried to inquire about.

My research has also revealed how ground mount systems are more complicated for permitting. If I was starting from scratch, that's the way I would go. But Tesla doesn't do it at all. Hopefully they do the roof install right this time.