Comment by 0xbadcafebee
Comment by 0xbadcafebee 2 days ago
DIY grid-tied residential solar+inverter+battery. Trying to design the solar arrays' tilt mechanism now for lifting/lowering 5 panels at a time in winter (60-degree winter angle, 35-degree spring/summer/fall; ~24" difference). Thinking either two linear actuators, or a single hydraulic jack connected to multiple support beams. The weight isn't much, but I want a way to lift entire top edge at once to prevent twisting. Linear actuators are slightly more money and easier to build, but require power and weather-proofing. Jack is cheaper, but more complex to distribute force. Wondering if there's other options. (winch would require more robust/taller rear posts, seems more complex, might shade rear array)
Nice, I started with 5 panels (450W each) and a simple design of interchangeable long and short rear legs to adjust the angle of each panel. Base of leg sits in a bracket on a steel frame, and pivots on an M8 bolt. Top of the leg attaches to some angled 'meccano' steel I affixed to the rear of the panels. It worked great, but I slightly over optimized by sharing legs, which made the twice a year switchover a bit tricky, since I could only manage to lift a single panel at a time.
Last year the 550W panels here dropped to 90eur, and so I just added some more panels to remove the need for the switchover. I saw last week 600W panels going for 80eur but no space left, but tempting. Good luck! It's a nice feeling to have energy independence.