Motorized frame to lift panels

[RoamingKat]

Ok. Sorry...I misled everyone.

The awning holds flexible panels...all together they weight pretty close to nothing. I lift the whole awning with one hand.

I wanted to tilt the fixed panels on my roof....2 of them. Together they weigh about 100 lbs.

As I said, putting up and taking down the awning is a hassle.....I was thinking that a motorized tilt mechanism for the roof might save me the hassle sometimes of having to put up the panels on the awning.

[RoamingKat]

   

[Tom_M]

I mounted three panels on the side of my coach. One is 85 watts and the other two are 100 watts. I also have a 125 watt panel mounted on the roof. The side panels can be tilted in place or removed and set out in the sun using extension cables.

[rvpopeye]

I remember those pics Tom.
How's it all holding up ?

[Tom_M]

The two 100 watt panels which are glass are new this fall. They replaced a 180 watt flexible panel that didn't hold up well. The other panel on the side is an 85 watt glass panel that I have been using for several years with no problems. I expect the 100 watt panels to hold up well also.

[RoamingKat]

I have seen people with solar panels permanently mounted on the side of rig driving with broken/shattered panels.

I only want to figure this out for the panels mounted up top

[sternwake]

I've never put all much thought into this possibility.

The issues I foresaw when i did, were if one single actuator were used, it would have to be in the middle, and it would also then have to act like a locking mechanism, or separate locking mechanisms would have to be deployed on the edges to hold the panel down tightly at 80mph, perhaps requiring some other system just for that.

I'm not afraid to go up and manually tilt my panel towards either side, but found I rarely ever do, even when I would like the additional harvest.

My additional solar harvest is accomplished by the light wood frame I added to my sunpower 100 watt 'flexible' panel, that is now mounted to the underside of the shelf over driver and passenger seats. I have various attachment points on the roof and Aiming this panel at the sun usually pretty simple, but if I were to do so in a windy area I would need a better retaining method

[Gr8ful]

Aiming is the easy part, just take a pop or beer can hold it against the panel & when there's no shadow around it, it's perfectly aligned with the sun.

[GotSmart]

Aiming is the easy part, just take a pop or beer can hold it against the panel & when there's no shadow around it, it's perfectly aligned with the sun.

So every time you think that you need to aim the panels, you need to drink another beer. 

You might have a job. 

[rvpopeye]

I think it would work with a full can.

So use the beans instead.