It takes a little skill and practice to harvest components from pre-owned or broken solar panels. Yet it is not so difficult that you cannot manage it with basic DIY skills.

You have to free the photovoltaic cells from the base it’s mounted on. After you have done this, check the solar cells for loose connections, broken panels, condensation and damaged diodes. Common problems such as these can potentially cause your solar panels to break down shortly after installation.

If the joints between solar cells are broken or loose, you have to re-solder them. Malfunctioned diodes can be replaced with new ones from your local component store. And if you see broken photovoltaic cells, you will have to source for a similar component to replace it — this can be challenging. Yet you can still make do with the broken cell in case your efforts to replace the broken solar cell fail. There will be reduced power output as a result, but this is not a grave concern.

The array of solar cells is usually mounted on a piece of masonite or acrylic (substrate) board before it is placed into a new solar panel frame. You can discard this substrate after a few years if you intend to replace the solar cells with fresh, new ones.

Using pre-owned solar panels to build DIY solar panels has its pros and cons. The most obvious advantage is the price. Used solar panels can be very cheap and some kind contractors may even give them to you without asking for a single cent. You are also less worried about breaking expensive photovoltaic panels while building your project.

On the other hand, a used solar panel’s lifespan may be significantly shorter. Their power output will also be a little lower compared to when it was new. A loose connection or a fault may hide itself somewhere that escapes your attention. As you build your DIY solar panel, trouble may spring up from these areas. However this can be managed if you’re careful in checking for potential failures.

Overall, harvesting parts from a used solar panels proof to be the best money saving method to build DIY solar panels. The only downside is the additional effort you have to put in. Yet as DIY hobbyists, we tend to take joy in such labor.

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3. How To Find Used Solar Panels

If you’re living in the northern hemisphere, your solar collectors should be tilted southward. The tilt angle is 15 degrees plus the latitude of the installation site. This is the ideal configuration that allows you to collect maximum sunlight all year round. For example, Arizona has latitude of 33 degrees. Therefore the tilt angle of your panel should be 48 degrees in order for it to harness maximum energy.

But many homeowners choose to conform the tilt angle to the inclination of their roof. They are concerned about the aesthetics of the installation. Although we will not achieve an optimized configuration in an engineering point of view, such setup serves the user’s needs and wants after all.

Fortunately, solar collectors with tilt variations that fall within 20 degrees (either direction) will not suffer serious loss. In fact, tilting them some 15 degrees northward from its optimum angle can have its advantages. During summer, water will not overheat and during winter more hot water is produced.

Similarly, tilting your heat collectors southward (away from the optimum tilt angle) can result in more overheating during summer and less hot water during winter. Ideally, the tilt angle can be adjusted according to the seasons. But the hardware required to implement this setup may end up as an ugly structure of metal and joints that displease homeowners. There will also be more moving parts to be maintained.

When orientating your heat collectors, you should ideally point them to true south. As compared to photovoltaic panels, heat collectors are more forgiving. Orientations of 15 degrees off true south still enable solar collectors to receive most of the solar energy. Beyond this tolerance, the effectiveness of the heat collector decays quickly.

You may often be forced to make a choice between an east-biased or west-biased orientation away from true south. Perfect orientations tend to be impractical at times. If you’re in this fix, choose the west so heat collectors can be exposed to more heat as a result of higher ambient temperatures in the afternoons.

As you line up your compass to find true south, remember that it is pointing to magnetic south instead. Corrections must be made to locate the optimum orientation. To do this, you need to compensate for the magnetic declination of your site.

Finally, as you are evaluating the installation site, remember that shadows cause your heat collectors to be drastically less efficient. Although solar water heaters are not as sensitive to shading, it is good to place them in an open, unobstructed location from 9am to 3pm so they can be exposed to the maximum amount of sunshine during this critical period. Using a standard shade analysis tool like a solar pathfinder, you can make it easier for yourself to evaluate the shading condition of your location.

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Trying to build a photovoltaic panel without basic skills is akin to a man who tries to be a painter without knowing the basic techniques of handling a brush…or toddler trying to cycle without developing a sense of balance. It is bound to be difficult — at least initially.

There are 3 essential skills necessary to build your own DIY solar panels. They are (1) handling of tools, (2) soldering & (3) a practical knowledge of electrical circuits.

Knowing how to handle materials is important. Whether you build solar panels using wood or metal, you have to understand how to manipulate the materials to shape them into the design you want.

This implies you have to know how to handle simple hand (or power) tools. Then you can cut the material or bend them. You’ll also need to finish (polish) the surface and edges so the burrs and jagged edges can be removed.

Inside solar panels are row after rows of electrical connections that have to be made by soldering. Therefore you also need to learn how to use a soldering iron to bond metallic joints. Bad solder joints can cause unnecessary resistance in the electrical circuit, lowering the effectiveness of your energy production. Fortunately this is a skill that can be acquired easily – often within 15 minutes or less.

Having a good working knowledge of how electronics work can be helpful. You do not necesssarily need to design your solar panel from scratch, but you will need to know how to implement the circuit design recorded on paper. It will also be useful to know some elementary electronics formula so you can size your solar panel system. Again, this knowledge is easily acquired if you take some time to read up.

Basic formulae that are needed for building electronic circuits can be easily found on the Internet or in your local library. Moreover there are also many books on homemade solar panels in bookstores that can help you with these basics.

Equiped with the above DIY skills, you can be assured that building DIY solar panels can become a rewarding hobby.

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3. Homemade Solar Panels

Used solar panels can be found in many places and from different sources. You can approach homeowners who have solar panels that look old. You can also try your luck at recycling centers where broken solar panels can occasionally be found.

Yet the most effective way is to contact contractors or agents who specialize in solar panel installation. Many of them discard used solar panels before fitting new ones for their customers. Another source to get used solar panels are building contractors. They often renovate houses installed with photovoltaic panels and are glad to have someone dispose such items for them.

Most of these people may give you their used solar panels provided you offer to transport them away from the site. If they are unwilling to hand those pre-owned solar panels to you, try offering them a small fee that includes transporting the solar panels to your residence.

As you hunt for used solar panels, remember to look out for fatal flaws that may render your photovoltaic cells unusable. Here are some tips on what to look out for:

1. Cracked glass, condensation under glass and broken connections are common problems that cause owners to discard their solar panels. Fortunately there is a remedy for these failures.

2. Loose connections between solar cells may go unnoticed as you inspect them visually. Such faults can be picked up using a resistance meter, and joints with high resistance can be re-soldered together.

Although pre-owned solar panels are cheap, there are downsides to using them. One of the most obvious is the decrease in power output. After they are exposed to the sun for one or two decades, photovoltaic cells become less effective. Although marginal, you have to take this degradation into consideration, as you’ll need more solar panels as a result. Used solar panels also have a shorter lifespan, thus they can only serve you for their remaining years.

Needless to say, the low price of used solar panels allure many people to buy them. If the cost per watt can justify the purchase and they still have many more years to go, they can be excellent investments.

Therefore if you intend to install a used solar panel for your home, the payback period can be shorter than when you buy new ones. A trusted contractor is able to help you look out for used solar panels that are relatively and without damage. Therefore keep in contact with them, learn from them and build a relationship, and you’ll have a good-as-new solar panel at your home soon.

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A Small Solar Power Generator

If you’re thinking of making your own solar power generator, you may have heard how easy it is to throw some photovoltaic components together and start generating energy from the sun. Isn’t it?

Yet if you’re building a solar powered generator for the first time, I can almost guarantee you’ll make these 3 most common mistakes that most beginners (and even some experienced hobbyists) do not know about.

Mistake #1: Not Calculating the Number of Solar Cells and Battery Bank Needed

While this sounds like the obvious, a good proportion of us are guilty. Simply estimating the power and voltage generated by the cells will not do. Calculations and measurements need to be done…for everything. You’ll need to have sufficient solar cells. Battery banks also need to be large enough to store enough of these renewable energy so that it can power your appliances throughout the period of use. Everything needs to be calculated, even the wire gauge (size).

This is especially important if you intend to power your appliance throughout the night. A small initial effort (towards calculations) goes a long way to make sure your project doesn’t crash and burn mid-way.

Mistake #2: Using A Flimsy Solar Panel Casing

It is important to design your solar panel casing with proper dimensions according to your material selection. But most beginners do not have a proven design nor proper planning. As a result, many of these constructions end up being flimsy. And as you may already know, solar cells are brittle and easily broken if you do not handle them with care. If they’re mounted on a flimsy panel casing, they can be broken during installation — it is at this time when most handling (and knockings) occur.

Mistake #3: Not Vapor-Proofing Your Solar Panels

Most homemade solar panel projects break down due to corrosion and rust at metallic joints. This is especially apparent if you’re living by the sea or in a humid area. Reason: vapor seeps through many types of sealant through time and they stay in the interior of the solar panel. So it is important to use the correct type of sealant so vapor cannot seep through.

While there are many other pitfalls you’ll probably encounter while building your first solar power generation project, the above three are the most common among hobbyists.

Fortunately, many mistakes such as these can be avoided if you have an experienced hobbyist guiding you. A good alternative is a reliable, step-by-step construction guide. This can also help you avert mistakes that can potentially bring your solar power generator project to a grinding halt.

PS. As many “advanced” hobbyists have commented, they’re still referencing these manuals even after they’ve built a few successful projects over the years.

Continue Reading:

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