Work Trailer Mounting

[Dadoftheturkeykids]

I am looking to install 2-yingli 240 watt panels on a work trailer to power lighting, powered jack, and a slew of tool battery charging. The panels are 65"x42"ish i think and It is a 10 foot enclosed aluminum work trailer.

My question is... What is the best way to secure the panels to the roof while retaining waterproofing? The trailer is brand new.

Thanks

 

[seneysolar]

Ladder racks? They drill in on the sides. Might be less invasive. Keep panels on one side front to back and you can still put a ladder on the other side.

 

[Dadoftheturkeykids]

Thank you! I don't know why I was overthinking it, just some square tubing ladder racks and L-brackets should work great. lol I'd need 2 sets of those

 

[justinm001]

I used half height superstruts. Drilled right through the roof into the frame on the ceiling and used lag bolts with washers. Put lap sealant on the holes and along the bottom of the struts. It holds the roof down better and makes the panels almost impossible to see from the ground.

You could use the ladder racks then mount the struts on top of them. They come in 10ft sections and available at HD/lowes

 

[Dadoftheturkeykids]

I used half height superstruts. Drilled right through the roof into the frame on the ceiling and used lag bolts with washers. Put lap sealant on the holes and along the bottom of the struts. It holds the roof down better and makes the panels almost impossible to see from the ground.

You could use the ladder racks then mount the struts on top of them. They come in 10ft sections and available at HD/lowes

View attachment 207240View attachment 207243

Looks like you got 1kw of power up there Nice! I see you just used clamp mounts with strut nuts, do you have any issues with them coming loose over time? What kind of system do you got going on inside?

 

[justinm001]

Looks like you got 1kw of power up there Nice! I see you just used clamp mounts with strut nuts, do you have any issues with them coming loose over time? What kind of system do you got going on inside?

I'm actually in the process of filling the rest of the roof should get 1600w. I'll have 5s3p going into my RV that pulls it then the 100w panel will be to keep the trailer battery topped off when sitting.

Right now the 1kw on the trailer is next to the RV hooked up with a custom cable into the mppt. I have 1800w on the RV roof as well and they keep everything charged up in the rig.

Now it's finally warming up in Ohio I can get my other panels swapped and finish the RV roof, should have 4kw on there plus the 1.5kw on trailer. I'm then gonna pump all that into my house to cover its idle loads using VICTRON ess.

The RV has 2x 5kw Victron Quattros with 10kwh batteries48v. It then goes to my 12v Quattro 5kw with its own 10kwh batteries. Fully redundant just incase. I figured when boondocking it'll be better to have that trailer when possible and get that extra solar