The price of solar panels has prompted many pioneering individuals to perform do-it-yourself installations. If you are planning to build your own solar panels, you should follow some specific steps.
First, you need to build a box for the panels. Start with a 1/2" sheet of plywood, cutting a section 2 x 4 feet. Rip some wood to make 3/4" x 3/4" strips that will glue and screw to the front of the plywood along the edges and in the middle. Cut two loose fitting pieces of 1/4" pegboard to go in the sections created by the strips.
You will need a 1/4" thick piece of Plexiglas cut the size of the overall panel for a cover. Drill holes about every 6" around the edges and across the middle to allow for attachment to the 3/4" wood strips.
Paint all sides of the wood and pegboard with exterior paint in a color of your choice. Have silicone caulk on hand for sealing all the cracks and creating an airtight seal. Use clear caulk to seal the Plexiglas to the box front when you are finished with the assembly. The screw holes and the screw tops after insertion should be caulked with silicone.
The solar cells themselves should be mono-crystalline and can be purchased in bricks. You will need around 40 individual cells to build the panel. The bricks should have about 18 individual cells in them. You may only need two blocks, but keep in mind that they are easy to damage so you might want extras. You can buy cells without tabs, but they require more soldering time.
The cells will need to be arranged to work within your usable areas. Lay them out to see how you want them placed, solder groups of cells together in easy to handle sections, and attach them to the pegboard with a dab of silicone on the back side. Do not apply excessive adhesive because the cells need to be able to move independently from the other materials.
After all cells are attached, each cell will need to be wired to the next in a series circuit. You will have two wires that leave the last cell. These need to be long enough to extend through a drilled hole in the bottom of the panel. These are your power out wires.
Attach the Plexiglas cover using silicone and screws, sealing the screws afterwards with silicone. Do not over tighten the screws as this can crack the Plexiglas. Use screws with smaller shaft diameters than the drilled holes.
Examine your panel one last time to be sure it is water tight, and you are ready to make electricity. In full sun, check out your top voltage with a meter. Your rate should be close to the rated output total of your cells. You now have the basic information needed to build your own solar panels.
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