How To Build A Solar Panel

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How To Build A Solar Panel

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Objective Of This Book

My main objective for this book is to bring you the essence of building a DIY solar panel without all the fluff and fillers. This can certainly be a 400-page book like most others, but you'll be poking bicycle spokes into your eyes before you can even finish half of the boring contents in it. If you need the history and development of photovoltaic cells (and different scientists who researched about solar energy), then this book is not for you. There are better resources out there. By the end of this book, you'll have a practical introduction of how to build your own solar panel and what tools and resources you need. If this is the kind of content you're looking for... then let's ride on.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Contents
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Materials and Components You'll Need How To Build the Solar Panel Frame How To Prepare the Substrate Tips On Painting the Solar Panel Frame Connecting The Solar Cells How To Mount the Solar Cells Testing the Solar Panel How To Mount the Plexiglass Protector Final Touch Ups

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

The material and components that you build your solar panel with is of utmost importance. With respect to your budget, go for better quality materials so your solar panel can perform at its best. Here's a list of materials you need: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Solar Cells Plywood & Plexiglass Masonite board Jones Plug Silicone Caulk Super glue and screws Diode and Wires Paint Battery

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Solar Cells
Depending on your budget, you can either buy new cells or purchase blemished ones. However if youre not comfortable (or inexperienced) working with blemished cells, you can simply get new ones. Although they're more costly, they last longer than blemished ones. If you have to work with blemished solar cells (due to budget constraints), eBay is a good place to buy them. You'll often see these going for dirt-cheap price. Or you can contact solar panel contractors who will often (gladly) give you these "trash" for no more than a can of soft drink. In case those used solar cells are chipped, you can even cut them to size and they'll still work... but they'll generate less power. For your first DIY solar panel project, avoid cutting solar cells.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Plywood & Plexiglass
The plywood we need is 3/8 inch thick. For the plexiglass, its thickness is not crucial. Both of these are easily available at your local hardware store. As you get more experienced, you can also use aluminum for the solar panel box and glass for the cover -- they tend to last longer than wood and plexiglass.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Jones Plug
A set of jones plug, both male and female, is required to connect between the solar panel and the charge controller. This allows the solar panel to be detached from the charge controller easily. Jones plugs are available at Newark Electronics.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Silicone Caulk
This is a strong, waterproof seal that is used to install many bathroom furnishings like bathtubs and kitchen sink. Most hardware shops carry this.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Super Glue & Screws
When joining wood, you'll need some super glue to attach the pieces of wood together before turning in the screws to hold them tight. This will help the wooden pieces stay in alignment as you work on the screws. This technique helps improve your workmanship.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Diodes & Wires
A diode is needed so electricity can flow only in one direction -- from the solar panel to the battery -- not the other way round. Otherwise the battery can discharge into the solar panel during the night. Wires, obviously, connect components together.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Paint
A solar panel is exposed daily to solar radiation. Thus high quality paint with UV protection is necessary to protect the wood from damage. Paint also prevents warping and damage due to moisture and precipitation. When you buy the paint, choose a light color (like white), so that the solar panel will not absorb more heat than necessary. Excessive heat reduces the power output of your solar panel.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Materials and Components You'll Need

Battery
The battery bank forms one of the most important parts of the solar energy system. It ensures electricity is available to the electrical system when there isnt enough power from the solar panel (probably due to a cloudy day or during the night). Many hobbyists prefer maintenance-free batteries and these, too, are easily available.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

How To Build Solar Panel Frame

After you have gathered the materials together, you'll have to create a shallow box (as the solar panel frame) for the solar cells to sit in. The area inside the box should be designed to hold all the necessary solar cells. An example: For a 12 volt, low-powered solar panel, an area of 46 inches by 23 inches would be sufficient for all the 36 solar cells. (Each solar cell, in this case, is about 3 inches by 6 inches) Remember to have a little spacing in-between solar cells. The border around the box should be about 3/4 inch high by 3/4 inch wide. If it's too high, it will cast a shadow on the cells as the sun comes in from the side. If it's too low, it doesnt allow sifficient (height) clearance for the solar cells. Although the borders can be a little wider -- such as 1 inch -- it really shouldn't go beyond that because the excess plywood will add to the overall weight of the solar panel.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

How To Build Solar Panel Frame

The design of the solar panel frame will be similar to the drawing below. There should also be a center divider across the center of the frame to provide added structural support.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

How To Prepare The Substrate

The substrate is a firm backing that's used to mount the array of solar cells. It can either be a Masonite board or a piece of perspex. (Perspex is usually more expensive) To prepare it, cut the Masonite board (or perspex) so that it fits snugly inside the solar panel frame. If you're using a Masonite board, give it a few layers of protective paint, and let each coat dry thoroughly before applying the next. If you do not paint the Masonite board, moisture may creep into the material, causing it to warp. This alone can cause you much trouble later on. Take care to cover every inch of the board -- both surfaces, the sides and corners -- so that it can serve you for as long as the solar cells can last.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Tips on Painting The Solar Panel Frame

As you're painting the substrate, you can also work on the solar panel frame. Apply at least 3 layers of paint to the inside and outside surfaces -- in fact, even the sides and corners...everywhere -- of the solar panel frame. Similar to the substrate, allow each layer of paint to dry completely before applying the next. Always let the paint dry in a well-ventilated area, away from direct sunlight. If there are gaps in-between the wooden joints, you can fill and seal it with some wood putty and let it dry thoroughly before painting over it. Although painting may take some time, it's pretty easy to do it well as long as you take note of the few points above.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Connecting The Solar Cells

As you're waiting for the paint to dry, you can take some time to wire up your solar cells. Each solar cell produces about 0.5 volts. If you want your solar panel to produce 18 volts to charge a 12-volt battery, you'll need about 36 of these photovoltaic cells connected in series for you to be able to get 18 volts. Note: You can't charge a 12 volt battery with a 12 volt supply. The supply needs to be at least 5 volts higher than the battery voltage. If you need more current from your solar panel, you can connect more solar panels in parallel. Treat this as you would batteries and you'll do just fine.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

How To Mount The Solar Cells

After you have connected the solar cells in series, you're now ready to mount them onto the substrate. The best way to do this is to squeeze a small blob of silicone caulk to the back (center) of the solar cells and paste them onto the substrate. Do not apply silicone caulk to the entire surface because this will restrict the expansion and contraction of the solar cells. Since solar cells expand (and contract) at a different rate as compared to the substrate, they'll crack when stressed because they are brittle. After you're done pasting all the solar cells onto the substrate, allow the silicone caulk to dry completely before putting it into the solar panel frame. This means letting it sit for at least 24 hours (or longer) in a well-ventilated place.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Testing The Solar Panel

Before you cover the solar panel with the protective plexiglass cover, test the solar cells again. Make sure that they indeed generate the correct voltage and power output under the sun. If possible, connect it to the actual load that it's supposed to drive and see that everything works before covering the solar panel with the plexiglass. Not forgetting the diode, you should connect it in series with the solar cells. Then place the diode inside the solar panel by sticking it to the side with a little silicone caulk. After that, hold down the loose wires and cables within the solar panel using tiny blobs of silicone caulk.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

How To Mount The Plexiglass Protector

After all the silicon caulk is completely dried inside the solar panel, we can begin to cover it up with plexiglass. To prepare the plexiglass for mounting, we'll need to drill the holes for the mounting screws and countersink it. These holes are at the edge of the plexiglass. The screws goes through them into the border of the solar panel frame. Note: Take care to apply moderate, consistent pressure while drilling and screwing so that the plexiglass wont crack. Pasting some tape at the spot you're drilling also helps prevent cracks.

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Final Touch Up
After the solar panel is covered with the plexiglass, you can connect it to the rest of the electrical system. At the end of the wire that dangles out of the solar panel, attach the (male) Jones plug by soldering them to the terminals. Also solder the (female) Jones plug to the input of the charge controller. Then connect the output of the charge controller to the battery. Note: Take care to get the polarities right. After hooking up these parts in the correct manner, youve made for yourself a complete solar power generator that can power up your electrical gadgets!

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Conclusion
There are many applications for the solar panel you've built. If you're following the design described in this book, you can use it to power any appliance that runs on 12 volts DC. Examples of some interesting home applications are: Automatic gate opener Garden sprinkler Garage lights Patio lights Water fountain pumps Vacuum cleaner charger etc.. Finally, the most important thing is to let your imagination run wild. Think of how you want your solar panel to serve you, then whip out a piece of paper and start designing!

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How To Build A Solar Panel

Any Questions?
As mentioned at the beginning, this book is meant to be a practical introduction on how to build your own solar panel. If you have any questions in your mind or are interested in a relevant topic that you cannot find on www.DIYSolarPanelsWorld.com, please feel free to contact us via the contact form and we'll get your questions answered or prepare some materials specially for you. Hopefully you've got at least one thing out of this book. That's all for now... talk soon!

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