Solar Tracker Project - Page 18

Xringer · 11-08-10, 10:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daox

Don't you have that dc amp hour meter thingy hooked up to the array?

Nope, the PV voltage is just a tad too high. The meter max is 60v.

~~~~

Edit: 23:40 Nov 9 2010..
Okay! I just bid on some of these.. 2 Pairs MC4 solar panel connector male & female, TUV - eBay (item 250721685411 end time Nov-10-10 22:14:35 PST)
And they should be in the mail this week..

Since my panels are in series, I can insert the meter into part of the loop.
I'll probably use 2 panels, so I can cut the meter voltage in half (current will be the same).
That way, I can take data all day and then multiply the watt hours times 2..

It appears that my meter has an option to use an external DC power power supply, to run the meter..
YouTube - Turnigy Precision Watt Meter and Power Analyzer
So the data won't be lost when the sun goes down, I'll use the 12v tracker battery to keep the meter turned on, 24-7..

Hey! E-bikers are using these meters..
Turnigy Watt Meter and power Analyzer

OutbackAuzz · 11-08-10, 09:57 PM

Hey there Xringer,

I also found the Redroc sight and was impressed with the single axis trackers. I have nine 175w panels and am planing on adding three more so as I can set up two lines of six either side of the roof ridge line spaced so as they all track the sun. And also,as the sun,now in the late spring, going into summer, is directly overhead, I am hopefully going to work out some way to lift them back up to face the lower sun in Winter. They will work off one Linear drive using a rod and linkage system so as to rotate them all evenly east to west. Question is,, I'm in the Southern Hemp and would like the panels to return to the East for the morning sun, is it poss with these Redroc trackers to be built and config this way before posting. Why I am asking is I can't contact Redroc via email,,,no responce. I will try posting photo's but I am a novice at this stuff.

Xringer · 11-08-10, 10:59 PM

Gday,
I'm trying to picture how your tracker would work..
Seems like the linkage might be the hard part of the design..

Anyway, this picture was taken from north of the array (looking south).
From this viewpoint, the left side is east..

(Taken this June.. 6/4/2010 / 15:22:28)

To make this array work if the Sun was North of me, I could just tilt it over towards the north.
It would still go home (east) each night..

Or, I could loosen up some bolts, spin the array and mount around 180 degs,
and turn the RedRock board upside down, so the east side (Red LED) was facing East.

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...ar/REDROCK.jpg

If the motor drives in the wrong direction, you reverse those two wires.
(There is 50:50 chance of getting it right the first try)!

I think my logic is good. If the 'east' side of the board is on the mount facing east, it should work fine.

Make very sure you have End-Limit switches in your linear actuator..

Cheers,
Rich

OutbackAuzz · 11-09-10, 03:39 AM

I get your thoughts Ta,
So here i just turn it over and have the red led east.
Duane will make these up and post,, correct
I'll try drawing a rough sketch of what I want to try and see if I can post here.
Your posts have really got me started, except I have the wife looking over my shoulder now, as I show her the parts lists. Steve

Xringer · 11-09-10, 07:39 AM

Hi Steve & Mrs. Steve,

I'm not sure about Durane's current health, but he had been sick for a while this past summer.
When I finally called him on the phone, he explained how he was catching up on building and shipping out boards.
I had mine made with the LEDs (detectors) pointing up, so I could lay the board flat, inside the waterproof box.
Which I later decided to change, to more like the 'Jar' that most folks use.

He does fantastic work. The quality of workmanship is excellent.
I highly recommend buying a finished & tested board.

Even if you do drive on the wrong side of the road,

you should have
no problem installing the board upside down (compared to mine)
and making it work. Just remember it moves the array very slowly.

I was up at the crack of dawn this morning, and my array was already
moving to point at the brightest part of the overcast sky.
It sure looks like another rainy day in Bean Town..

Cheers,
Rich

YouTube - movie2.wmv

Xringer · 11-11-10, 10:43 AM

Wow, the sun came out today!! Clear blue skies abound!!

But, when the panels got fully illuminated around 10 AM, I was only getting about 250w!
Now that the sun is a bit higher (almost noon here), it's up to 500w again..

Note:
It's now ~24 hours later and it looks like yesterday, but this time I was getting almost 500w before 10AM.
I guess there was a little haze in the air yesterday.?.

There does not seem to be any connection problems. If there was even 1/10 of an ohm, (of added resistance)
I would not be seeing 7 amps (almost 500w) this morning..

OutbackAuzz · 11-14-10, 01:56 AM

Thanks for the link Rich, can't directly post you as yet.
Don't know how the threaded rod would go (dirt- wear etc) from the drive motor over time, but the differant systems and trackers around the world is impressive.
I will get around to a rough sketch up of what I'm planing, but the more idea's the better.
Have another idea on the go as well. Ten speed racing bike gears driving a spit roast with 12v 2rpm motor, but thats another story

Xringer · 11-17-10, 06:39 PM

Would have been crushed by about 400 pounds of Array, had I been down wind.
I was on the west side, and it fell towards the east, during a sudden gust of wind.
It was pretty strong, and there was a bit of a roaring sound, which made me
look up from my work. I almost ran over to try to keep it from rolling over,
but my fear of injury saved me from that foolish act..

It hit on the top. The 3 little 10w panels took the hard landing.
I tried to lift it (hurt my back big time) and rolled it over on it's side.

Very little damage. I removed the all 7 panels and set the mount upright.
Stored away the big ones and re-installed the 3 babies as it was getting dark.
In the end, I had on my LED headlight!

while I was wiring the Redrock back up.
Hope it still tracks tomorrow.. The motor is sounding funny now..

The reason for this accident is procrastination . I was looking at this
location and had finally decided that I should drive in some steel spikes to nail it down for the winter winds.

Just this morning, I was thinking about how I was going to saw
up the long steel rod stock to make 4 ground spikes.

Someone could have been killed by my hobby this afternoon..
I feel pretty foolish tonight..

mrd · 11-20-10, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xringer

I was looking at this
location and had finally decided that I should drive in some steel spikes to nail it down for the winter winds.

I purchased large auger-type tie-downs from a local trailer-home dealer for a shed a few years ago. They hold down entire homes, they should be good enough for anything you throw at them. To screw them into the ground, I attached a long pipe and made circles for a while.

Xringer · 11-20-10, 04:44 PM

Interesting idea. I've been thinking about tower guy wire anchors.

I looked up mobile home tie-down and found this..
All Purpose Anchor Kit # 59070 by Tie Down Engineering

The only problem is the rocks. Only a few inches below the surface, there are many rocks.
None of them are smaller than a large apple. Most are in the cantaloupe to breadbox size range.
It's hard to find a spot to drive in a 1/2" steel rod. The rocks stop it cold.. Sometimes it takes 3 or 4 attempts..
Those crank in anchors would be hitting rocks after about 4"...

11-08-10, 09:57 PM	#172
OutbackAuzz Lurking Renovator Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 16 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	solar 1.5kw Hey there Xringer, I also found the Redroc sight and was impressed with the single axis trackers. I have nine 175w panels and am planing on adding three more so as I can set up two lines of six either side of the roof ridge line spaced so as they all track the sun. And also,as the sun,now in the late spring, going into summer, is directly overhead, I am hopefully going to work out some way to lift them back up to face the lower sun in Winter. They will work off one Linear drive using a rod and linkage system so as to rotate them all evenly east to west. Question is,, I'm in the Southern Hemp and would like the panels to return to the East for the morning sun, is it poss with these Redroc trackers to be built and config this way before posting. Why I am asking is I can't contact Redroc via email,,,no responce. I will try posting photo's but I am a novice at this stuff. Attached Thumbnails

11-11-10, 10:43 AM	#176
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Wow, the sun came out today!! Clear blue skies abound!! But, when the panels got fully illuminated around 10 AM, I was only getting about 250w! Now that the sun is a bit higher (almost noon here), it's up to 500w again.. Note: It's now ~24 hours later and it looks like yesterday, but this time I was getting almost 500w before 10AM. I guess there was a little haze in the air yesterday.?. There does not seem to be any connection problems. If there was even 1/10 of an ohm, (of added resistance) I would not be seeing 7 amps (almost 500w) this morning.. Last edited by Xringer; 11-12-10 at 09:34 AM..

11-17-10, 06:39 PM	#178
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Near disaster this afternoon.. Would have been crushed by about 400 pounds of Array, had I been down wind. I was on the west side, and it fell towards the east, during a sudden gust of wind. It was pretty strong, and there was a bit of a roaring sound, which made me look up from my work. I almost ran over to try to keep it from rolling over, but my fear of injury saved me from that foolish act.. It hit on the top. The 3 little 10w panels took the hard landing. I tried to lift it (hurt my back big time) and rolled it over on it's side. Very little damage. I removed the all 7 panels and set the mount upright. Stored away the big ones and re-installed the 3 babies as it was getting dark. In the end, I had on my LED headlight! while I was wiring the Redrock back up. Hope it still tracks tomorrow.. The motor is sounding funny now.. The reason for this accident is procrastination . I was looking at this location and had finally decided that I should drive in some steel spikes to nail it down for the winter winds. Just this morning, I was thinking about how I was going to saw up the long steel rod stock to make 4 ground spikes. Someone could have been killed by my hobby this afternoon.. I feel pretty foolish tonight..

11-08-10, 10:59 PM	#173
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Gday, I'm trying to picture how your tracker would work.. Seems like the linkage might be the hard part of the design.. Anyway, this picture was taken from north of the array (looking south). From this viewpoint, the left side is east.. (Taken this June.. 6/4/2010 / 15:22:28) To make this array work if the Sun was North of me, I could just tilt it over towards the north. It would still go home (east) each night.. Or, I could loosen up some bolts, spin the array and mount around 180 degs, and turn the RedRock board upside down, so the east side (Red LED) was facing East. http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f1...ar/REDROCK.jpg If the motor drives in the wrong direction, you reverse those two wires. (There is 50:50 chance of getting it right the first try)! I think my logic is good. If the 'east' side of the board is on the mount facing east, it should work fine. Make very sure you have End-Limit switches in your linear actuator.. Cheers, Rich

11-09-10, 03:39 AM	#174
OutbackAuzz Lurking Renovator Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 16 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I get your thoughts Ta, So here i just turn it over and have the red led east. Duane will make these up and post,, correct I'll try drawing a rough sketch of what I want to try and see if I can post here. Your posts have really got me started, except I have the wife looking over my shoulder now, as I show her the parts lists. Steve

11-09-10, 07:39 AM	#175
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Hi Steve & Mrs. Steve, I'm not sure about Durane's current health, but he had been sick for a while this past summer. When I finally called him on the phone, he explained how he was catching up on building and shipping out boards. I had mine made with the LEDs (detectors) pointing up, so I could lay the board flat, inside the waterproof box. Which I later decided to change, to more like the 'Jar' that most folks use. He does fantastic work. The quality of workmanship is excellent. I highly recommend buying a finished & tested board. Even if you do drive on the wrong side of the road, you should have no problem installing the board upside down (compared to mine) and making it work. Just remember it moves the array very slowly. I was up at the crack of dawn this morning, and my array was already moving to point at the brightest part of the overcast sky. It sure looks like another rainy day in Bean Town.. Cheers, Rich YouTube - movie2.wmv

11-14-10, 01:56 AM	#177
OutbackAuzz Lurking Renovator Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 16 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Thanks for the link Rich, can't directly post you as yet. Don't know how the threaded rod would go (dirt- wear etc) from the drive motor over time, but the differant systems and trackers around the world is impressive. I will get around to a rough sketch up of what I'm planing, but the more idea's the better. Have another idea on the go as well. Ten speed racing bike gears driving a spit roast with 12v 2rpm motor, but thats another story

11-20-10, 04:44 PM	#180
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Interesting idea. I've been thinking about tower guy wire anchors. I looked up mobile home tie-down and found this.. All Purpose Anchor Kit # 59070 by Tie Down Engineering The only problem is the rocks. Only a few inches below the surface, there are many rocks. None of them are smaller than a large apple. Most are in the cantaloupe to breadbox size range. It's hard to find a spot to drive in a 1/2" steel rod. The rocks stop it cold.. Sometimes it takes 3 or 4 attempts.. Those crank in anchors would be hitting rocks after about 4"...