good info there leapingbuddha!
Quote:
Originally Posted by leapingbuddha
SONICJ: How much does that panel cost. Does that include a voltage regulator?
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it doesn't exist yet so im not quite sure.
that drawing was just me playing with different layout configurations. weight is my first concern. for safety, i'd like to keep the cg as low as possible. the other biggie is width. i'd like to keep the width as close to stock as possible to keep people from banging their heads and to avoid having to hang dingleberries from the roof.
43 3/4" is a little more width than i want, but required to accommodate these particular cells...
heres the cells im considering:
link basically, they are cosmetic blems that never made their way into production panels.
for a regulator i was considering the 48V prostar by morningstar.
for the panel frame, i was considering using 3/4 foamular, with maybe some carbon fiber stiffeners embedded, then glassed with fiber glass. should be rigid, lightweight and cheap. the foamular also shapes easily with power or hand tools so making purdy rounded edges is easy. plus, foam and fiberglass hurts less than whacking your head on aluminum.
for the glass, i was thinking lexan. if i loose a couple % of efficiency thats fine, the weight savings should be significant.
just to be clear, i have no intentions of saving the planet or pipe dreams of self sustainability, i just find it interesting and want to get my hands dirty w/a small pv system. mrgreen:
-sj