Tuesday, September 7

Panel-washing hazard

The solar panels on our storage building need a bath, but Karla is at the lake and won’t let me go up onto a slippery wet metal roof two stories off the ground unless she’s around to call for a rescue helicopter in case I fall. That’s never made sense to me; by the time a helicopter arrived I’d have already hit the ground!

4 comments:

Pete S. said...

Is there a way to cool those solar panels for more power in hot weather? Perhaps spray a mist of water on the back sides? Or install an electric fan that moves air across them?

Tom Hurley said...

I suppose the best way would be to put big heat sinks on the backs of them, with radiator fins. A neighbor across the valley has been on solar panels for as long as us and he was going to build chimneys onto the backs of his panels that would draw air across them. I don't know if this was successful. It could take a lot of water to keep them cool, but I bet it would work like a charm.

HHhorses said...

How about you use your solar water pre-heater in reverse? Have the collection on the back side and it would draw the heat away.

Tom Hurley said...

It's too far away from where we need hot water. And we would have way too much hot water. We would have to go in to the hot-water-selling business, which is not doing too well out here in the boondocks.