Solar Panels: Feedback, Please . . .

[JayH]

Originally Posted by Bash

I don't see where running the wires inside the tubing will make maintenance more difficult.

I was advised that for any additional welding on the arch, the wires would have to be removed from inside the legs, otherwise they could melt. So keep that in mind if you're planning to add more stuff later.

[MoonlightSailor]

Thanks for all the info! We will have our tower mounted in the next couple of weeks.

We want to run the wiring internally. One of the feet has a hole in the underside to pass the wiring (two - 10g, one - 8g, and one GPS antenna) through the deck under the leg.

I need some feedback on how to waterproof that hold with the wiring passing through it. Probably not a good idea to just fill it with 3M 4200 and then bolt the foot down. I'd like to be able to pull wiring later if damaged somehow.

What say you?

[JiffyLube]

Since the wire is insulated why would you need to do anything to it? I think using the caulk to the foot of the arch should be good.

[MoonlightSailor]

OK...I can go with that. I was worrying about water intrusion at the top where the wires enter the arch. I guess that can be caulked with a minimal amount of caulking on the underside of the pipe where the wiring enters the pipe.

When I drill the 1 1/2" hole in the deck under the foot I'm going to need to seal the balsa core somehow. Any ideas there? 4200? Resin?

[cfarrar]

I was worrying about water intrusion at the top where the wires enter the arch.

You have a good point. Maybe seal the coring with epoxy. Then run the wires through an all-weather clamp, or, if that won't fit under the foot of your arch, simply seal the wires with a flexible, removable sealant like silicone or 4200.

By the way, if 8 ga wires prove difficult to run to your junction boxes and through your tubing, you can always run 12 ga until just below the deck, then switch to larger cables via a pair of power posts. I did this exactly this: 12 ga above deck and 4 ga below. If you crunch the numbers you can find the right combination to keep the resistance below 1%.

[Unicorn Dreams]

Thinking of upgrading my system with these three Ktocera 135 W panels.
405 Watts for $1140

[mrm]

Originally Posted by MoonlightSailor

OK...I can go with that. I was worrying about water intrusion at the top where the wires enter the arch. I guess that can be caulked with a minimal amount of caulking on the underside of the pipe where the wiring enters the pipe.

When I drill the 1 1/2" hole in the deck under the foot I'm going to need to seal the balsa core somehow. Any ideas there? 4200? Resin?

Since you have to seal the core anyway, why not epoxy in the deck a short length of plastic pipe, extending to about an inch above the deck and run wires through it? Add some sealant around wires for a good measure.

As for the top of wiring, I would introduce a small sag in wires just before they enter the arch pipe, so any water running down them will just drop down there. What little remains can be protected against with some sealant.

[Tafika2]

We installed two 135W the Kyocera KD135SX-UPUpanels on the top of our arch using a Blue Sky 2000E controller. We used Kyocera's factory watertight cables which are run inside the arch tubing. This was an easy project with great results. We are in a marina, but rarely have the shore power on.

[JiffyLube]

Originally Posted by MoonlightSailor

OK...I can go with that. I was worrying about water intrusion at the top where the wires enter the arch. I guess that can be caulked with a minimal amount of caulking on the underside of the pipe where the wiring enters the pipe.

When I drill the 1 1/2" hole in the deck under the foot I'm going to need to seal the balsa core somehow. Any ideas there? 4200? Resin?

Maybe some expoxy.

[JiffyLube]

Originally Posted by mrm

As for the top of wiring, I would introduce a small sag in wires just before they enter the arch pipe, so any water running down them will just drop down there. What little remains can be protected against with some sealant.

That's a good idea. I did that with our backstay radar, and it's worked just fine.

[JiffyLube]

Originally Posted by Tafika2

We installed two 135W the Kyocera KD135SX-UPUpanels on the top of our arch using a Blue Sky 2000E controller. We used Kyocera's factory watertight cables which are run inside the arch tubing. This was an easy project with great results. We are in a marina, but rarely have the shore power on.

Heck, you could be an unoffical live aboard and the marina would never know by your electric bill. That gives me an idea.

[capnorv]

I ran #8 machine wire and found plastic strain reliefs the right size. Drilled and tapped the deck and filled with 5200. Seems to work well.