Solar panel hood mount

[Basil.]

I like it! I was thinking of putting a panel on the roof of my camper, but it's a bad place for cleaning convenience, and low hanging branches.

Did you use standard panel mounting brackets?

Yep! Just standard Z brackets off of amazon.


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[Martinjmpr]

What about vibration? Any issues there? I would worry that if you drove on a long washboard road that wires could start to break. Also could the panel get damaged if you slam the hood too hard when closing it?
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I could see rigging up some kind of a mounting system where as soon as you stop, the panels come out and get attached to the hood - that seems to make sense to me. But I don't think I'd want them there all the time. Potential of damaging the panels (rocks kicked up by other vehicles, hail, etc) and also glare off the panel (flat surface = mucho glare. I know that because I owned a 1990 Montero with a very flat hood! Driving towards the sun was very unpleasant!)

 

[rruff]

What about vibration? Any issues there? I would worry that if you drove on a long washboard road that wires could start to break.

None of your concerns seems compelling to me. The hood seems like as good a place as any. And even if something did break or the panel was stolen, they are cheap. A 100W panel costs around $120.

 

[Paddy]

What about vibration? Any issues there? I would worry that if you drove on a long washboard road that wires could start to break. Also could the panel get damaged if you slam the hood too hard when closing it?
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I could see rigging up some kind of a mounting system where as soon as you stop, the panels come out and get attached to the hood - that seems to make sense to me. But I don't think I'd want them there all the time. Potential of damaging the panels (rocks kicked up by other vehicles, hail, etc) and also glare off the panel (flat surface = mucho glare. I know that because I owned a 1990 Montero with a very flat hood! Driving towards the sun was very unpleasant!)

You're missing the beauty about these, they are only about 3/32" thick in total, and they curve to the shape of the hood. So, any glare they produce would only be a replica of the factory glare. Except these are black so in my case they should provide a glare reduction simply by not being white!
They are rated to walk on, and the weigh almost nothing compared to old glass type panels. They are completely potted in liquid plastic over all the cells and even in the sturdy Jbox it's all gooped up and ready to rumble.

I'm thinking about permanent mounting with pop rivets directly to the hood but I'm not totally sold on that yet. If theft wasn't a concern then some fancy mushroom lock Velcro would do the trick and I still may do that. Could put fake bolt heads on the surface to make it look like they are theft proof


Notice how the cells seem to be floating above the metal sheet? Because they are embedded in plastic.

 

[Paddy]

Yep, about 3/32

 

[dms1]

On Facebook, I saw a 4Runner with his hood covered in vinyl wrap and then had a 100 watt flexible solar panel glued to the vinyl so it could be removed in the future and no drilling holes in the hood.

 

[dlh62c]

Well it was at one point but I don't consider it one now. Why do you think that? I don't think I'd invest in a solar hood if it was a junker. It's a pretty baddasss truck actually. Little more complicated engine system than I prefer, but otherwise it's a burly platform for my camper build 5.0

There's something to be said about having the ability to park up in the shade on a HOT summer day with a portable set of panels placed in the sun away from the vehicle.

 

[rruff]

They are rated to walk on, and the weigh almost nothing compared to old glass type panels. They are completely potted in liquid plastic over all the cells and even in the sturdy Jbox it's all gooped up and ready to rumble...Notice how the cells seem to be floating above the metal sheet? Because they are embedded in plastic.

Which model did you buy? Looking at the semi-flexible panels Amazon I see a fair number of issues reported. Cupping, melting, easily scratched, short life. Unlike rigid panels which are warrantied for 20 years or more, they are usually only warrantied for a year.

Yours might be different though with a metal backing.

 

[Martinjmpr]

There's something to be said about having the ability to park up in the shade on a HOT summer day with a portable set of panels placed in the sun away from the vehicle.

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I could see that but the flip side is that by having them hood mounted you don't have to set up anything. Park the vehicle, switch on the controller (if it even needs to be switched on) and walk away. Coming back to the vehicle, same thing, just get in and drive away, vs having to pick up your panel and put it away. Also having the panel separated from the vehicle while you are away makes it more possible for someone else to walk away with your solar panel.
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I think it all comes down to whether greater overall efficiency is your goal (which would favor parking the vehicle in the shade and putting the panel in the sun) or greater convenience and security(which would favor the rigid hood mount.) I don't think there's a right or wrong answer, it depends on which aspects of the setup you need to prioritize.
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I would still be concerned that any smooth flat reflective surface is going to be very unpleasant to drive if the sun is forward of you. Maybe they could make a panel with a no-glare surface? Otherwise I think it would be a good way to use otherwise unused space.

 

[Paddy]

Which model did you buy? Looking at the semi-flexible panels Amazon I see a fair number of issues reported. Cupping, melting, easily scratched, short life. Unlike rigid panels which are warrantied for 20 years or more, they are usually only warrantied for a year.

Yours might be different though with a metal backing.

Exactly. The fully flexible ones can get cupped which holds dirt in the center of the cell blocking the light. And looks ugly. The SEMI flexible models don't suffer from this. Think of them as a hybrid between flex and fully framed.
It's always a tradeoff.

I can't say wether these will last 20 years or not but unless the thing delaminates or totally fails from UV I don't think anything else will cause it to stop working. Like i said I've installed this type of panel before on my sprinter van. I curved it on that installation even more than these and it held up like brand new after 2 years sleeping outside. From snow to crushing heat of summer.

 

[Paddy]

There's something to be said about having the ability to park up in the shade on a HOT summer day with a portable set of panels placed in the sun away from the vehicle.

I'll still enjoy the shade when I can, but when I can't these will help to offset the increased cooling load on the fridge. So, that's their main purpose and they adjust their output as the need dictates not the other way round.

Plus, being on the hood I do get SOME adjustable angle to match the sun, if the sun is behind us we open the hood! Which, come to think about it negates the trapped engine heat issue too.

 

[Paddy]

On Facebook, I saw a 4Runner with his hood covered in vinyl wrap and then had a 100 watt flexible solar panel glued to the vinyl so it could be removed in the future and no drilling holes in the hood.

That's an awesome idea. I may have to steal that. Although I'm not sure how you'd remove it in the future without damage to the panels or hood.

 

[Clutch]

On Facebook, I saw a 4Runner with his hood covered in vinyl wrap and then had a 100 watt flexible solar panel glued to the vinyl so it could be removed in the future and no drilling holes in the hood.

That's an awesome idea. I may have to steal that. Although I'm not sure how you'd remove it in the future without damage to the panels or hood.

Be cool if you could cover the whole vehicle with Photovoltaic paint.

http://www.nanoflexpower.com/automotive

 

[rruff]

Exactly. The fully flexible ones can get cupped which holds dirt in the center of the cell blocking the light. And looks ugly. The SEMI flexible models don't suffer from this. Think of them as a hybrid between flex and fully framed.
It's always a tradeoff.

I was wondering about the exact model. An aluminum backing it pretty rare, as most have some sort of plastic backing.

You check the temperature with an IR gun and see how extreme it gets. Get the truck fully warmed up by driving, then park it in the sun on a calm, hot, sunny day. That would be worst case. Even if the hood gets too hot, some insulation under it should fix that.

If someone would like to play along, a truck with darker colored paint should get just as hot as a panel.

I also like having a movable panel, but I am not going to be camping in shade most of the year. SW desert in winter and high altitude in summer.

 

[yukon702]

Gotta pair of 50w semi flex panels that I'm hood mounting. These new breed of panel makes it very easy to mount of curves and they are strong and very thin. Tested today and they produced 2.75a ea in the sun.

Can you list where you bought them? How much were they? I think it looks pretty good just need to tidy up the wires.

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