How to Make a Solar Panel That Works

There are now a variety of reasonably priced individual solar cells available on the market, opening the way to the do-it-yourself assembly of solar panels that are designed to fit specific needs. This means anyone can have a solar panel that really works, avoiding any problems with the panel not producing enough juice to meet its dedicated power requirements.

Things You'll Need

• Solar cells
• Plywood
• Saw
• Molding
• 3/4-by-3/4-inch lumber
• Hammer
• Nails
• Paintbrush
• Exterior Primer
• Exterior Paint
• Corkboard
• Box cutter
• Wood glue
• Silicon caulk
• Caulk gun
• Electrical wiring
• Wire nuts
• Drill
• Plexiglass
• Plexiglass cutter
• Screwdriver
• Screws

Instructions

Designing the Panel

1. Determine the combined electrical demand of all devices that will be powered by the panel. For example, if the panel is to power a 10-watt ventilation fan that will run 24 hours a day, it will consume 240 watts.

2. Determine the necessary power output of the panel to meet that demand. An average day is supposed to have six hours of peak sunlight, and most solar electric computations are based on that. So, the entire 240-watt output must be met during those six hours, which means the panel must produce 40 watts per hour.

3. Choose the specific solar cell that you want to use, and then sketch a plan. In this example, 10-watt cells that are 15 by 9 inches are chosen, and an inch of padding is included between the cells, the resulting plan is for a 2-by-2 cell arrangement that will have a backing of 33 by 21 inches.

Building the Panel

1. Saw the backing from plywood to meet the dimensions of your design.

2. Saw 3/4-by-3/4-inch lumber to form borders around the sides of the backing.

3. Nail the borders onto the backing, using two or three nails per side. This will create a shallow box, which is now your solar panel.

4. Take a brush and first prime, and then put two thick layers of exterior paint on the panel. This will protect it from the weather, so hopefully your homemade panel will last as long as the cells within it (at least 20 years).

5. Use a box cutter to cut a section of corkboard that will fit the backing. Use wood glue to fasten this to the inside of the panel to serve as a substrate for the solar cells.

Installing the Cells

1. Use the caulk gun and silicon caulk to glue the solar cells into their positions, keeping about an inch of padding on all sides of the cells. Put a big, inch-sized glob of caulk onto the three or four spots on the cell, and press it into position on the corkboard.

2. Bridge the cells together. In this example, there are four cells. All the cells will have short negative and positive leads extending from them. First join these leads to wires by twisting them together with wire nuts. Then join the wires of two cells together using wire nuts in the same way, positive-to-positive and negative-to-negative. Repeat the process again, and all the cells will be running through the same wire.

3. Make the wiring in the panel neat by arranging it so that the cells' wiring is joined in the center column of padding, and runs down to the bottom. Fasten the wiring into place on the corkboard with a little silicon caulk.

4. Drill holes into the panel. First, drill a pair of ventilation holes into the backing, placing the holes safely in the inch of padding around the outside of the cells. Second, drill an exit hole for the wires. Third, drill four holes in the corners of the panel's border for screwing a plexiglass top onto the panel.

5. Thread the wiring out the exit hole, and then seal this hole shut while fastening the wiring by using silicon caulk.

Putting the Top On

1. Double check the measurement of the entire panel now that there are borders on it. This example will be plus 1 1/2 inches to the length and width, because of the 3/4-inch borders, for 34 1/2 by 22 1/2 inches.

2. Cut a matching piece of plexiglass to serve as a cover.

3. Place the plexiglass onto the panel, and mark the location of the screw holds drilled in Section 3, Step 4.

4. Drill the marked holes into the plexiglass.

5. Drive in screws and fasten the plexiglass cover using a screwdriver.

References

• Mike's World: How to Build a Solar Panel