[Small Plot Big Ideas]

Does anyone here have something like this already?


We are considering it because there is no suitable south facing roof plus we have a good spot in a field close by but are there any special considerations for this type of thing?


I have done quite a bit of research on-line already but I thought it might be worth asking if anyone had any practical,real-world experience of it!

[mab]

you'd be better asking on this forum TBH:-

http://www.navitron.org.uk/forum/

I'm sure there'll be some on there who have ground-mounted arrays.

[chrismahon]

We visited a couple in Sarlat (Dordogneshire) who had a ground array. Two 24 volt panels connected in series to reduce the cabling costs. The 48 volts charged 4 large batteries in one of the Gites. The output was inverted to 240V (not 220V as you would expect) and powered kitchen equipment and lighting. When the output voltage was too low a changeover relay switched the power to mains. Worked well the previous year, but the array was a bit of an eyesore and the rain could splash mud so I presume it had to be kept clean. Bit of a novelty really. Not sure the installation will pay back as the batteries will deteriorate.


Feeding electricity into the grid isn't evident here, presumably the 3 phase domestic supplies make the electronics complex and expensive. Lots of people have solar hot water though.

[Greenerlife]

I have ground mounted solar pv in my garden.  Couldn't get planning permission to put it in my field, so it had to be the garden.  It's at the bottom of the garden, and whilst initially, it looked enormous and unsightly, I have totally got used to it!  (That and the cheque we get every quarter). The panels are self cleaning, so you don't need to worry too much about that, the only time I clear them is when it snows.  Any questions - happy to try and answer them.

[cloddopper]

My bro in law has a permitted max sized ground array done about two & a half years ago . This is set up as a feed in to the national grid etc.
He didn't have to worry about getting flat land as he lives just outside Market Deeping Lincolnshire where the land is as flat as milk on a plate . It is sited about 30 feet from the cottage , in the paddock that holds freezer sized Soay's

His only complaint is that he's had to fence it in to keep the Soay sheep out as they often got under the lowest parts .  The fenced in area is quite a bit bigger than the array footprint  .

He's weed killed the area inside the fence and laid  industrial /civil engineering weed mat then covered it in three inches of white ish gravel as this helps give a slight reflected UV gain as well as keeping it weed free.

His two sons ( 11 &13 ) got stupid one day and kicked a football into the kitchen window breaking it and knocking the array monitor that was set on the window cill onto the quarry tiles breaking the glass.  The good news is that the monitor works even though the front glass is looking like a transparent octopus.

[cloddopper]

Does anyone here have something like this already?


We are considering it because there is no suitable south facing roof plus we have a good spot in a field close by but are there any special considerations for this type of thing?


SPBI ,
A few minutes ago I was looking at www.solar plants .org.uk  ,they are suggesting west , south or east facing roofing & garages as now being suitable ( four years ago they would not entertain the idea of any thing other than South facing roof's ..Why ?        )

They also show some interesting ground arrays in their pictures.

[Small Plot Big Ideas]

We eventually got a quote of just under £8000 for almost 4Kw and it seems to make sense so we're going ahead. The comment about fencing in is a good point but I'm assured that they can put these high enough so sheep don't affect them but cattle would need fencing to avoid damage!

More news and pics when its done

[cloddopper]

Congratulations ,
Do you have to have them in place, fitted and working by a deadline such as the 1st of NOV 2013 to get the current feed in tariff??

[Small Plot Big Ideas]

The tariff MAY change in 31 Dec and if it does it's bound to go down. We may get ours in time depending on planning approvals - we're in the North Pennines AONB