Go Back   EcoModder Forum > EcoModding > EcoModding Central
Register Now
 Register Now
 

Reply  Post New Thread
 
Submit Tools LinkBack Thread Tools
Old 08-06-2009, 11:01 PM   This thread is in the EcoModder Project Library | #1 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
gascort's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Saint Louis, MO
Posts: 548

Gascort RIP - '93 Ford Escort Wagon
90 day: 43.01 mpg (US)

WifesCruze - '11 Chevrolet Cruze LT
90 day: 31.1 mpg (US)
Thanks: 14
Thanked 25 Times in 16 Posts
Solar Roof

My coolest mod yet!

More photos and details than you'd ever want on my blog:
Scientific Method meets Fuel Economy: SolarArray

__________________
Gasoline, Wind, Solar, Gravity Hybrid-to-be! http://www.scientificmethodfueleconomy.blogspot.com/
  Reply With Quote
The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to gascort For This Useful Post:
dremd (08-14-2009), Piwoslaw (08-02-2010), yoyoyoda (03-07-2014)
Alt Today
Popular topics

Other popular topics in this forum...

   
Old 08-06-2009, 11:07 PM   #2 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
Matt Herring's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: North Andover, MA
Posts: 857

Bone's 2010 Prius - '10 Toyota Prius Black
90 day: 56.78 mpg (US)
Thanks: 5
Thanked 23 Times in 19 Posts
That's nifty...like it! Forgive my ignorance but what are you powering in the car with the energy it generates and will it (or how will it) help FE?
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-06-2009, 11:43 PM   #3 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
gascort's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Saint Louis, MO
Posts: 548

Gascort RIP - '93 Ford Escort Wagon
90 day: 43.01 mpg (US)

WifesCruze - '11 Chevrolet Cruze LT
90 day: 31.1 mpg (US)
Thanks: 14
Thanked 25 Times in 16 Posts
Matt,
It's going to augment my alternatorless-ness. Nothing now - but I have plans for it. Daox, Orange4boy, and I have been working on a solution for low voltage issues.
I have a trickle charger already, but this is fun, cool, and a step toward learning about solar. I don't want to spend $500 on an inverter system until I can get a simple battery system working well.
__________________
Gasoline, Wind, Solar, Gravity Hybrid-to-be! http://www.scientificmethodfueleconomy.blogspot.com/
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-06-2009, 11:52 PM   #4 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
Matt Herring's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: North Andover, MA
Posts: 857

Bone's 2010 Prius - '10 Toyota Prius Black
90 day: 56.78 mpg (US)
Thanks: 5
Thanked 23 Times in 19 Posts
Thanks for the info. and was interesting reading your build blog too! Great pics and good to hear the wife is on board as well...never hurts to have a little support. Best of luck and will be following your progress!
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-07-2009, 12:31 AM   #5 (permalink)
Moderate your Moderation.
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Troy, Pa.
Posts: 8,919

Pasta - '96 Volkswagen Passat TDi
90 day: 45.22 mpg (US)
Thanks: 1,369
Thanked 430 Times in 353 Posts
How much does the setup add in weight?

Have you considered also using the hood?

How much do you think the panels you used cost?

Have you considered getting packs of "Damaged" panels from eBay?
__________________
"żʞɐǝɹɟ ɐ ǝɹ,noʎ uǝɥʍ 'ʇı ʇ,usı 'ʎlǝuol s,ʇı"


Last edited by Christ; 08-07-2009 at 01:24 AM..
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-07-2009, 01:38 AM   #6 (permalink)
aero guerrilla
 
Piwoslaw's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Warsaw, Poland
Posts: 3,691

Svietlana II - '13 Peugeot 308SW e-HDI 6sp
90 day: 58.1 mpg (US)
Thanks: 1,269
Thanked 721 Times in 458 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Christ View Post
Have you considered also using the hood?
I wonder if the hood is a good idea. First, at certain angles it could cause more glare than the normal hood paint job, blinding the driver. Second, the hood gets warm when after the engine has been operating, and solar cells' efficiency decreases with temperature.

I'm also interested in weight.
__________________
e·co·mod·ding: the art of turning vehicles into what they should be

What matters is where you're going, not how fast.

"... we humans tend to screw up everything that's good enough as it is...or everything that we're attracted to, we love to go and defile it." - Chris Cornell


[Old] Piwoslaw's Peugeot 307sw modding thread
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-07-2009, 03:49 AM   #7 (permalink)
Pokémoderator
 
cfg83's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Southern California
Posts: 5,864

1999 Saturn SW2 - '99 Saturn SW2 Wagon
Team Saturn
90 day: 40.49 mpg (US)
Thanks: 439
Thanked 530 Times in 356 Posts
gascort -



100 Watts in 4-5 hours of sun. How many daytime alternator-less miles does this translate to?

CarloSW2
__________________

What's your EPA MPG? Go Here and find out!
American Solar Energy Society
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-07-2009, 05:02 AM   #8 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
orange4boy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: The Wet Coast, Kanuckistan.
Posts: 1,275

The Golden Egg - '93 Toyota Previa DX
90 day: 31.91 mpg (US)

Chewie - '03 Toyota Prius
90 day: 57 mpg (US)

The Spaceship - '00 Honda Insight
Thanks: 100
Thanked 306 Times in 178 Posts
Nice roof panel! I like the tree /power lines reflection. Looks like power palm trees. Very post modern metaphor.

For 5 hours charging at 100 watts that's 40 AH theoretical before losses. Not too shabby.

I need one for my Kammback...

Keep on amping!
__________________
Vortex generators are old tech. My new and improved vortex alternators are unstoppable.

"It’s easy to explain how rockets work but explaining the aerodynamics of a wing takes a rocket scientist.


  Reply With Quote
Old 08-07-2009, 08:19 AM   #9 (permalink)
Administrator
 
Daox's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Germantown, WI
Posts: 11,203

CM400E - '81 Honda CM400E
90 day: 51.49 mpg (US)

Daox's Grey Prius - '04 Toyota Prius
Team Toyota
90 day: 49.53 mpg (US)

Daox's Insight - '00 Honda Insight
90 day: 64.33 mpg (US)

Swarthy - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage DE
Mitsubishi
90 day: 56.69 mpg (US)

Daox's Volt - '13 Chevrolet Volt
Thanks: 2,501
Thanked 2,585 Times in 1,553 Posts
That is really sweet! I love how you have so much area you can use. I'm a bit jealous of that, haha.

Just the other day I was talking to SVOboy about doing something similar. My idea was to use my sunroof and paste the cells to the bottom side of it. This wouldn't nearly the area yours does though.

With you pumping out that many amps, you're probably gonna wanna pick yourself up a charge controller too I'd imagine.
__________________
Current project: A better alternator delete
  Reply With Quote
Old 08-07-2009, 10:55 AM   #10 (permalink)
Master EcoModder
 
gascort's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Saint Louis, MO
Posts: 548

Gascort RIP - '93 Ford Escort Wagon
90 day: 43.01 mpg (US)

WifesCruze - '11 Chevrolet Cruze LT
90 day: 31.1 mpg (US)
Thanks: 14
Thanked 25 Times in 16 Posts
Quote:
Originally Posted by Christ View Post
How much does the setup add in weight?
Basically nothing. Each "string" of 14 cells in series weighs less than one pound. I had to keep them from blowing in the wind as I lifted them up and set them in place. The plexiglass is 95+% of the added weight, and it's probably about 20 pounds. It would be about 10 pounds if I wasn't stupid and got the right thickness (the thinnest Lowes sells is much more flexible than what I got)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Christ View Post
Have you considered also using the hood?
Yes! I have one string producing 7.25V up there that I can't come up with a use for unless I add more somewhere else later. I was thinking probably the hood, or also a neat idea would be the top 6" of the windshield, where it's tinted dark blue or black anyway. Hood is the flattest, and most ideal, though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Christ View Post
How much do you think the panels you used cost?
They were $2.50 each. Each was rated at 1.8W
Quote:
Originally Posted by Christ View Post
Have you considered getting packs of "Damaged" panels from eBay?
These are those ones from Ebay, and most looked like new. Some had chipped edges, and a couple had cracks. Even the cracked ones work fine.
I got them from ebay seller fred480V, it looks like he sells lots of solar cells from his feedback, and he's got some new ones for sale now that are way more powerful than these. His auctions state something like, "best in the world right now" or "best available on Ebay at this time"

__________________
Gasoline, Wind, Solar, Gravity Hybrid-to-be! http://www.scientificmethodfueleconomy.blogspot.com/
  Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to gascort For This Useful Post:
j12piprius (03-13-2011)
Reply  Post New Thread


Thread Tools


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Commercially produced aerodynamic pickup bed cap MetroMPG Aerodynamics 636 01-09-2022 06:21 PM
Replacing alternator with solar panel array on roof? blackjackel EcoModding Central 91 01-19-2012 09:19 PM
xB Solar panel roof trikkonceptz EcoModding Central 10 02-28-2009 03:27 PM
Solar cell panel on the roof..?. Xringer EcoModding Central 5 09-07-2008 01:51 AM



Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.5.2
All content copyright EcoModder.com