Expanding Solar Panel Options

For many years, the only types of solar panels commercially available have been crystalline solar panels arranged in a rectangular casing and positioned on a roof. That is why most people, as soon as they think of solar energy for their home, imagine this as their only choice. Below are some new advancements in solar power and mounting options you may well have never heard of before.

Thin Film Solar Panels - Man Is This Skinny!

Imagine the solar panel you have in a solar calculator. This is a thin film solar panel. Thin film solar panels are used to a great extent in satellites. Thin film technology is currently being extended into residential and industrial use and was named one of the best inventions of 2008 by TIME magazine.

Thin film solar panels are bendable, unlike polysilicon cells found in conventional crystalline solar panels. These thin film solar panels are being hailed as second generation solar power technology.

Thin film solar panels are more resilient to hailstones, dust, and so forth. If a portion of a crystalline solar panel is damaged, the whole solar panel will stop working while a thin film solar panel will continue to operate.

Thin film panels can also be flexible and modified to a lot of surfaces. They can be applied in places conventional crystalline solar panels cannot be mounted on top of. I have even seen a thin film panel sewed on a coat that powered a MP3 player.

The downside to thin film panels is that they do not take in as much energy because they are so thin. These panels are not nearly as efficient as traditional photovoltaic panels but they cost less. Thin film solar panels are printed onto the rolled backing, eliminating many of the high energy and chemical intensive processes that are normal in conventional PV manufacturing.

Thin film solar panels are low wattage and have need of more space than conventional solar panels and they are more prone to degradation. In order to counteract some of these competitive disadvantages they have against traditional solar panels, manufacturers offer better warranties for thin film panels.

The largest thin film solar photovoltaic (PV) project in the United States is the Blythe plant located 190 miles east of Los Angeles, California. The 21-megawatt solar power plant uses thin film solar cells made out of cadmium telluride. At full power, the plant will make enough electricity to power an estimated 16,500 homes.

Now let's examine conventional solar panels and a few of the mounting options that are available you may have not heard of before.

Mounting Options For Traditional Solar Panels - It's In the Mount

Solar panel mounts are available in three main varieties: pole mounts, roof-ground mounts, and flush mounts. With these mounts, you can install your solar panel on your roof, onto an RV, on top of or against the side of a pole, and even install them as a free-standing unit.

Pole Mounts - No This Is Not Something Santa Claus Uses For His Sled

Pole mounts, particularly top-of-pole, have been well-liked for a long time. Top-of-pole mounts are essentially a steel or aluminum rack and railing system bolted or welded to a big sleeve that sets on top of a pole with set-bolts to keep it stationary. Side-of-pole mounts are often used when you need to mount to the side of a telephone pole or communications tower. Tracking mounts are similar to top-of-pole mounts, but they also have a method of automatically aiming the mount to follow the sun.

Top of pole mounts (including sun trackers) are one of the simplest mounts to install. They really only need a single steel pole set in the ground (usually in concrete), and the mount slips onto the top of the pole. Most ordinary sizes use a 2-inch to 8-inch pole, usually around 11 to 13 feet in length. They can go higher if you want to get the panel up higher to escape shading from nearby vegetation.

Those Roof-Ground Mounts

Roof-ground systems can be mounted onto a roof or ground without much reworking in setup. They are typically made from stainless steel in a grid-like system of supports. Roof-mounted panels for smaller systems are the easiest to put in, using little flush-mount brackets that lift up the panels to the most excellent angle for solar collection.

Ground mounts, as the name implies, are solar panel mounts that are installed on the ground (as opposed to a pole mount or roof mount). They have supporting, variable legs that allow you to optimize their vertical orientation for solar exposure. Ground mounting systems usually entail plenty of steel supports, concrete foundations, and galvanized footings, that can be challenging, when you are trying to keep your system low cost. Ground mounted systems require structural strength to prevent load bearing failure.

Even though module mounting systems are available for ground and roof installation, roof mount installation is the most popular and cost effective approach. The roof mounted panels are attached to a mounting system typically consisting of an aluminum or steel support structure which attaches the panels to the roof.

Flush Mounts

Flush Mounts are economical and easy to install - these are ideal for single panel installations and smaller solar arrays. Flush mounts are put onto a level exterior such as a rooftop, the top of a boat, or the top of a recreational vehicle and are not used for ground installations. These mounts work to separate the solar panel from the mounting surface and allow airflow to go under and cool the solar panel for smooth operation. Flush Mounts are usually used with small solar arrays on roof tops and RVs, because the structural design of a flush mount cannot hold large solar panels.

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