DIY Photovoltaic Solar Panel Mount

On September 14, 2008 in photovoltaics

I have been getting more questions about the satellite dish mount that I used to mount my solar panel with, so here are some pictures that will hopefully give some more insight.

The original post can be found here: DIY Solar Panel Mount

This is a mount that I removed from a Dish Network satellite dish.

The elevation and skew are marked on the mount in degrees, making it easy to mount your panel at the correct angle. Here is a link to some great info about the Optimum Orientation of Solar Panels

Here is the mount, with the markings for skew visible:

The solar panel will mount to the part of the satellite dish mount with the skew markings on it. I used two bolts, one on each side.

The elevation markings can be seen here. With the mount oriented as it is in the picture, the solar panel would be face down on the table.

Looking down at the mount, you will see this:

The circular part slips over a piece of pipe which can be mounted to your house or set in the ground. Unfortunately I do not have measurements on the mount with me, but will update with them later.

Here is the part where the solar panel mounts:

The whole thing will then rotate about the pipe collar by loosening the elevation bolt.

Another view here:

The side opposite the elevation markings:

This is how the mount would look when mounted on a vertical pipe.
Here you can see that the elevation of the mount is currently set to an angle of slightly less than 40 degrees. (this is after removing a satellite dish from the mount.. actual angle will depend on your location)