The Panels Are In

   My three Heliodyne Gobi 406 001 solar panels arrived at my work the other day.  It was quite the event.  Work is in downtown Brookline Massachusetts which has very narrow streets.  Fedex Freight showed up to the site with a truck that was too large fit into our loading area (height restrictions) and no liftgate.   Fortunately we had interns.  Lots of interns.  They kindly helped me unload the panels and then reload them into my friend Doug's Ford F-150. 

    Of course I give my friend Doug crap for commuting to work in an F-150.  He drives at least one hour each way and probably only gets about 15 MPG.  Really kind of ridiculous.  But on days like this, I am glad he has the truck and willing to help out.

    The panels were shipped to my work to avoid added shipping fees.  When freight companies ship to a residence, they can tack on a $100 fee for the added difficulty.  They may tack on an additional $100 fee for a liftgate (sort of an elevator on the back of the truck).  To avoid these fees I shipped to a business address.

    One surprise with the panels is they are a full inch thinner than expected.  The panels were supposed to be 3.8" thick but are only 2.8" thick.   Apparently Heliodyne has come out with a thinner product line that is designated with "S".  So technically the panels are 406001S even though I ordered 406001 and the panel label says 406001.  It is frustrating to have that uncertainty in the ordering process, but in this case, it didn't do any harm.  In fact I think the thinner panels look great.

    The panels are so thin, that when Doug saw them on the truck he said there is only one panel, where are the other two?  Well all three panels were strapped to one oversized pallet, but with only 8.4" total thickness, he thought it was a single panel.

    The panels had to sit in my garage for a while, because I had not ordered the appropriate clips from Heliodyne.  Upon trying to order the clips, I found it almost impossible to figure out.  Alt-E (on-line store where I bought the panels) could not really help.  I think if you buy the Heliodyne racking system, they give you the clips.  But if you have made your own rack (like I did from Misumi extrusions) then you are on your own.

     So I decided to design and make my own clips out of stainless steel.  They are a pretty simple parts.  They only clamps down on the edge of the aluminum frame of the panel and have holes in the center for an M8 bolt. 

  To make the part, I milled one long piece of stainless steel on the bridgeport with the appropriate profile.  Then I came back and drilled the hole and cut off the individual parts.  The machining is less than perfect (as seen in the picture)  but it should work just fine.  Total machining time was four hours, which is way too long, but I am still learning my way around a bridgeport.  I was proud to be able to make them myself and the part is very sturdy.

   With the clips in hand, mounting the panels on the frame was quite straight forward.  Unfortunately I don't have a good picture because I immediately covered the panels with cardboard and tarp to avoid them over heating.  But trust me, the panels are under there and look great.