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brucedownunder2
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Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: Australia
Posts: 1548

Posted: 03:30am 30 Oct 2008

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Hello ,, I've received and returned my preliminary documents for the "ECO-KINETICS" 1 Kw solar install-due to be installed 8-12 months ,,but at my cost of $355 who cares !!

What I'd like to do is have them installed on my home built tracker ..This will require a Mechanical engineer's certificate ,,I'm sure .. I have all the steel and know-how to build the thing ,,just need a mechanical engineer's certificate-
Can anybody help,,I'm willing to pay for this -Probably just need the footings certified,steel sizes of the frame certified.
I would "over -engineer" it to allow for 2 Kw. have heaps of structual 3x3 steel ..

hoping someone out there is certified and can help ..

Thanks
Bruce

Bushboy

Bryan1

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Joined: 22/02/2006
Location: Australia
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Posted: 07:56am 30 Oct 2008

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Eh Bruce,
Mate just move out of the burbs and DIY

I'm not sure if I told ya before but my previous neighbour applied to put up a 40 metre wind genny tower to our local council, 9 months later they rejected it because they didn't know what it was.. dont be surprised if your council is the same mate

OK stirring out of the way mate go look at some e-bay trackers and copy them and if the council asks just say ya bought them with a certificate but the wind blew it away..

Cheers Bryan

robbo

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Joined: 25/03/2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 71

Posted: 10:59am 03 Nov 2008

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Hey there Bruce,
I have ordered my Eco-Kinetics 1KW system for the same price as well - $355 WOW !
Grid connected, so, when I don't use the power, it pays credits for me.
How do you intend to mount the panels ?
How are you tracking them, something you made yourself ?
Any pics ?

Congrats for reliable power. My mill tower will look nice, up against the panels.

"the Earth was not given to us, by our fathers, rather, it is lent to us by our children".

brucedownunder2
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Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: Australia
Posts: 1548

Posted: 08:22pm 03 Nov 2008

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Hi Robbo, I'm fairly sure they will object to my idea of installing the panels on a home built tracker ,,for "compliance" reasons.. you see they are safe on a roof because your house got a building inspection certificate after it was built,,not so with a home built solar panel tracker..

I'm still interested in the tracker idea, and have all the "goodies" to build it..

Bye the way ,are you near me? Mt.Tamborine area ?

Bruce

Bushboy

robbo

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Joined: 25/03/2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 71

Posted: 10:45am 04 Nov 2008

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Yeh, I am at Loganholme.
Did they tell you the delivery will be sometime within the next 12 months?
How many wind gens do you have up nowadays ?

"the Earth was not given to us, by our fathers, rather, it is lent to us by our children".

brucedownunder2
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Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: Australia
Posts: 1548

Posted: 08:14pm 05 Nov 2008

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Hi Robbo, only got the dual F&p up . May be erecting another smaller tower behind the house later.

Solar delivery will be between 8-12 months they say.

You are welcome to visit me anyday ,,lots of interesting things to see.. I thought of having a BBQ one weekend for the Brissie-local guys that may be interested..

Bruce

Bushboy

robbo

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Joined: 25/03/2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 71

Posted: 05:16am 08 Nov 2008

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Hi Bruce,
I think a "renewable BBQ", would be great. We could all bring things to show from our own little projects.
I am, working on a twin F and P myself now.
Do you have a Tracker for the solar, designed already?
I would also like to see that.

"the Earth was not given to us, by our fathers, rather, it is lent to us by our children".

brucedownunder2
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Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: Australia
Posts: 1548

Posted: 07:50pm 08 Nov 2008

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Yes,,a BBQ and show and tell of things would be great.. I'll look at a date around Christmas and then invite all . The drive to here from south side of Brisbane is around 50 minutes.

Robbo, no tracker yet,but have the hardware and Ross from Albury has the tracker Cct working ..

Bruce

Bushboy

brucedownunder2
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Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: Australia
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Posted: 08:16pm 23 Dec 2008

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Yesterday, I called "eco-Kinetics" , the company that is contracted by the Qld Govt. to supply and install 1 Kw solar grid fed systems .

I asked about the "changing of the goal posts that recently happened concerning the $8000 Govt. rebate.
The office guy told me that if our paperwork is in and the $355 paid ,then the $8000 will still apply.
He stated that he has been advised it would be around the middle of 2009 that the new rebate would take effect,meaning a rebate of only $4000 would be applied to everyone,regardless of income.

So, hopefully, I will get mine sometime in the new year. I'll keep you posted.

Bruce

Bushboy

robbo

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Joined: 25/03/2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 71

Posted: 11:25am 01 Jan 2009

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Hey Bruce,
Have you looked at something like this instructable ?
(not to mention, it is my second favorite website !)

http://www.instructables.com/id/Solar_PV_tracker/

The design has merit, I think.

"the Earth was not given to us, by our fathers, rather, it is lent to us by our children".

Jarbar
Senior Member

Joined: 03/02/2008
Location: Australia
Posts: 224

Posted: 03:25am 17 Jan 2009

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Hello Bruce and Robbo,how many degrees of arc would the panels need to rotate to catch most of the days sun.As I am looking at making a tracking system for my impending solar array.I hope to have 12 panels set out in 2 rows of 6.Hopefully mounting 2 panels per rotating shaft assembly.But i may be missing something when Bruce alludes to wind loads and engineering certs.Any input would be helpful.

Anthony.

"Creativity is detirmined by the way you hold your tounge".My Father
"Your generation will have to correct the problems made by mine".My Grandfather.

GWatPE

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Joined: 01/09/2006
Location: Australia
Posts: 2127

Posted: 06:39am 17 Jan 2009

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Hi jarbar,

If you go to the bother of making a solar trtacker for your array, you may as well go for the whole day. The ground layout will determine if shading from adjacent panels will impact.

Allow for summer/winter settings with a manual adjustment. 2axis tracking requires extra gimballs etc.

Gordon.

PS: I would only mount a tracked array on the ground.

become more energy aware

brucedownunder2
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Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: Australia
Posts: 1548

Posted: 08:30pm 02 Feb 2009

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Hi Guys, Good news , Yesterday I received comfirmation from the fed Goct. of my approval for the $8000 rebate on a 1Kw solar system ..

The system must be installed within 9 months of yesterday and has to be open for inspection for 5 years .

So, now for the waiting of the EKO-KENITICS installation team.
Bruce

Bushboy

Jarbar
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Joined: 03/02/2008
Location: Australia
Posts: 224

Posted: 05:19am 06 Feb 2009

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Well done Bruce,
our local Council is about to advertise for interested parties to join a group buying scheme.I hope it gets up before the $8000 runs out.For anyone in the Knox area in Melbourne keep an eye on the local papers.If more info comes I'll post it here.

Anthony.

"Creativity is detirmined by the way you hold your tounge".My Father
"Your generation will have to correct the problems made by mine".My Grandfather.

Bryan1

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Joined: 22/02/2006
Location: Australia
Posts: 1344

Posted: 11:35am 06 Feb 2009

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It really is shame this is a grid tie rebate I've only got about 1.9Kw of pv here and could use another kw

Edited by Bryan1 2009-02-07

brucedownunder2
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Joined: 14/09/2005
Location: Australia
Posts: 1548

Posted: 09:57pm 06 Jul 2009

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Hi Crew,

The site-survey guy from Eco-Kinetics came yesterday ..

He is a builder by trade so didn't know much about technical details of the parts ,Etc.
But they do leave you with an upgrade list of parts ,I thought any upgraded part was very expensive ,so I decided to just leave it as a standard install,1 Kw with the sunnyboy inverter. I'll go a different way when I get around to connecting the wind gennie.

He suggested installing onto the garage north roof area ,no extra parts required and the cost is still the $ 355 that I have paid.
Hopefully they will be installed in two weeks..

Bruce

Bushboy

MacGyver

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Joined: 12/05/2009
Location: United States
Posts: 1329

Posted: 04:26am 09 Jul 2009

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I just perused this thread and will admit I didn't read every post, so if it is
completely off the wall, I'm apologizing from the git-go. That being said,
I have a suggestion.

I use a solar tracker to concentrate sunlight on a fixed-focus
concentrating mirror array and it works great. What I don't know is if
reflected light will power a PV array or not. I've never tried it, but I think
it should work. If I'm totally HUA, just skip this next part.

My collection target is fixed. I move a flat-plate mirror (called a helio-
stat) and simply bisect the angle between the sun's location in the sky
and my fixed target. This sends light in parallel to the focal axis of my
collector.

The aiming device (little d.c. clock motor thingy I made) is set on my
mean latitude facing South (I'm in USA) and it works like a champ. I'll
throw up some pictures on my new Web site in a month or two and put a
link to the site here on the 4M when it happens.

At any rate, what do you think? Seems to me it's a lot easier to move one
big flat mirror than a bunch of PV panels.

Any thoughts from the crew?

Nothing difficult is ever easy!
Perhaps better stated in the words of Morgan Freeman,
"Where there is no struggle, there is no progress!"
Copeville, Texas

Jarbar
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Joined: 03/02/2008
Location: Australia
Posts: 224

Posted: 09:12am 09 Jul 2009

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MacGyver, your idea has a lot in common with an invention shown here last night on a TV program called the New Inventors.This link will give more insight,hope it helps.
http://www.sunengy.com

Anthony.

"Creativity is detirmined by the way you hold your tounge".My Father
"Your generation will have to correct the problems made by mine".My Grandfather.

Tinker

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Joined: 07/11/2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 1904

Posted: 02:31pm 09 Jul 2009

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Jarbar said MacGyver, your idea has a lot in common with an invention shown here last night on a TV program called the New Inventors.This link will give more insight,hope it helps.
http://www.sunengy.com

Anthony.

I watched that show on TV, the inventor obviously tested it in a calm backyard pool but them mentioned installing large arrays of these devices was possible.
Now, large bodies of water deep enough to accommodate the inverted Fresnel lens do have substantial waves when the wind is high enough to employ the dunking of the lens.
Me thinks that the waves will do even more damage to the lens than the wind would if it stayed above water.
So I very much doubt that this novel idea is practical.

Further, on any other than windless days the tracking motors will work overtime to keep the lens aligned due wave action, most likely negating any gain from the solar concentration. So, floating tracking solar collectors may not be a good idea after all. Much better to use water cooling on land and utilize the heated water afterwards.
What really surprised me was the panel of judges, none of which saw fit to ask the obvious question about waves.

Klaus

MacGyver

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Joined: 12/05/2009
Location: United States
Posts: 1329

Posted: 04:58pm 10 Jul 2009

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I didn't get to see the program. I looked at the Web site; it looks a lot more
complicated than my setup.

Wind on a large flat mirror would be a problem. My rig is sheltered in my
back yard behind a six-foot fence and it's actually pretty small. The
collection mirror is circular with a diameter of about 2 feet. I use it to heat
oil that runs down the focal axis and is stored in a 10-gallon tank buried in
beach sand (for insulation purposes).

I'll toss up some pictures on my new Web page if/when I get around to
building that. I've got a lot of plates in the air right now. Stand by.

Nothing difficult is ever easy!
Perhaps better stated in the words of Morgan Freeman,
"Where there is no struggle, there is no progress!"
Copeville, Texas

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