Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Can panels be mounted on either side of a plumbing vent pipe?

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Can panels be mounted on either side of a plumbing vent pipe?

    It would make installation much easier for me if I could mount several panels vertically on my pitched metal roof with the plumbing vents being between the panels. I could do it so that the vents could be reached easily if necessary. I live in Shasta County, Ca if it makes any difference. All knowledgeable thought would be appreciated.

  • #2
    You can do that, but the vent is probably going to shade those adjacent panels some. There is a outfit called solarroofjack.com that makes a special roof flashing that will allow to reroute plumbing vents under the array and up the roof to get them out of the way. (Not affiliated with them other than having tried this out)
    BSEE, R11, NABCEP, Chevy BoltEV, >3000kW installed

    Comment


    • #3
      You could do that provided you consider building codes with respect to vents and interference with the vents' operation by the proximity of other devices such as solar panels.

      I'd wonder if you've considered what the decrease from optimum tilt will have on production. Vertical orientation of panels is not usually the optimum tilt to when considering maximizing production. Nor is it usually the easiest orientation to build or prove for wind other external loadings.

      A PVWatts est. of annual output shows horiz. array orientation outperforming south facing vertical orientation by about 1,200 vs. ~ 900 kWh/yr. per D.C. kW of STC capacity. ( and FWIW, south facing tilted for Redding latitude gives an output est. ~ 1,370 kWh/yr. per yr. per D.C. kW of STC capacity)

      As for shading, and not knowing your proposed layout, I'd think shading from any of the vertical panels closer to the equator might be another consideration as well as from the vents.

      I'd move the vents as Solarix might be suggesting.
      Last edited by J.P.M.; 09-18-2016, 05:10 PM.

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by todenbach View Post
        It would make installation much easier for me if I could mount several panels vertically on my pitched metal roof
        Do you mean mount vertically, or do you mean portrait (as opposed to landscape) orientation while mounted in a parallel plane to the roof face.


        BTW - "pitched metal roof" can be a number of things - is it a standing seam roof? Or another type of metal roof? And what pitch? Whatever it is, you'll need to find an appropriate mounting system - that's not something I'm familiar with, but I have seen people talk about "S5" for standing seam roofs.
        Last edited by foo1bar; 09-18-2016, 04:53 PM.

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by solarix View Post
          You can do that, but the vent is probably going to shade those adjacent panels some. There is a outfit called solarroofjack.com that makes a special roof flashing that will allow to reroute plumbing vents under the array and up the roof to get them out of the way. (Not affiliated with them other than having tried this out)
          Did it work out ? How about aesthetics ? PITA factor ? Any AHJ issues ?

          Thanx,

          J.P.M.

          Comment


          • solarix
            solarix commented
            Editing a comment
            I recommend this vent modification. Not hard to do and allows for a much more appealing array. No inspector problems so far.

        • #6
          Originally posted by foo1bar View Post
          Do you mean mount vertically, or do you mean portrait (as opposed to landscape) orientation while mounted in a parallel plane to the roof face.


          BTW - "pitched metal roof" can be a number of things - is it a standing seam roof? Or another type of metal roof? And what pitch? Whatever it is, you'll need to find an appropriate mounting system - that's not something I'm familiar with, but I have seen people talk about "S5" for standing seam roofs.
          Spoiler alert: Rated PG - 13.

          I see your point about vertical.

          After reading your post, and realized a wave of brain flatulence had passed through my head as happens quite often, I probably felt about the same as Mickey Mouse's lawyer.

          In the lawyer's case, a call was made to Mickey to report on possible actions based on Mickey's recent enquiry as to the possibility of divorcing Minnie based on the lawyer's understanding of what Mickey had told the lawyer: To whit, Mickey's claim of her unstable behavior. The hot shot lawyer advised that based on Mickey's statement that Minnie was, in effect, loosing her mind, and after scouring case law and seeking advice from other attorneys, there was no way Mickey could sue for divorce in CA, or anywhere else for that matter on grounds that Minnie was crazy as Mickey had advised the lawyer. Mickey, then, in a quite animated way, and with more than some incredulity, simply glared at the lawyer and said: "You dummy, I didn't say she was crazy, I said she was f**ckin' Goofy".

          This may be an example of the idea that a lot of miscommunication starts with bad/incorrect assumptions.

          I take my practice of engineering quite seriously - myself not so much.

          Comment


          • #7
            I had several plumbing vents combined during construction to minimize roof penetrations. makes it tougher to send a snake down the right vent to clear a clog, but PVC vents are also easily cut and repaired in the attic.
            Maybe consider the attic space, instead of under panel ?
            Powerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
            || Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
            || VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A

            solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
            gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Lister

            Comment

            Working...
            X