Ground mounted arrays can be aimed at due solar south, which optimizes the solar harvest year-round.
The ground may be your best option for locating your system. Using your lawn has one big advantage. It allows us to orient the solar array as close to due south as possible, regardless of which way your roof may point.
In the case example shown here, the home’s south-facing roof was too small to accommodate a system, but the back yard had plenty of sun. In this photo, we are just finishing the wiring connections for a residential-scale ground-mounted solar array.
The process is simple: We pour feet to reach below the frost line. Next, we assemble speed-rail pipe to hold rails. We then attached the solar modules to the rails. The inverter may be located underneath the array or in the nearest building. Finally, we dig a trench from the array to the building to bring the power into the appropriate meter.
Project specs:
- System size: 8.12 kWdc
- Mounting: Ground mounted racking with tilt of 37 degrees and compass orientation of 180 degrees.
- Year Installed: 2017
- Electricity offset: Saving $1,300 per year.
- State grant: $3,192
- Federal & state tax credit incentives: $14,182