Best DIY Solar Ground Mount | Complete Assembly 

Nah, just 18" off the ground. We get plenty of snow too, not a problema

Thanks for the feedback!

Really good job

Very cool video

Nice, thanks for the feedback on your setup 🙌

Nice idea. How exactly did you attach the u bolts and pole to the mount. They would need to attach to a verticle piece in the center of the mount, correct?

Thanks!

You bet!

Nice, sounds like that would make for a good video in the future 👍

@@everydaysolar - If you'd like some pictures showing how it goes together and a rough estimate on cost, let me know.

@@jasonbroom7147 I'd love to see the details!

@@ssoffshore5111 - I used 1-5/8ths cyclone fence posts, spaced 8' apart, with 1-3/8ths poles between each post. I then used #2 pipe hangers, which fit perfectly around the 1-3/8ths poles. That's what I bolted each panel to. The smaller poles fit inside the larger ones, so you can use them to set the height/angle of your panels on one side or both.

@@jasonbroom7147 I would love to see some pictures. Would you be open to sharing?

Thanks man! Welcome to the channel 👍

I just liked the idea of the bottom mounting plates being secured to 1 long member avoiding movement at each leg. Thanks for the feedback.

​@@everydaysolarwhat app are you using to see the tilt angle?

@@hillybilliescrypto.4965 just the standard Measure App on an iPhone. You can switch it over to a bubble level to get the angle. I think Android has a similar App native to the phone.

You wouldn’t want to do that much as with the base, rack, and panels it is actually pretty heavy.

Local lumber yard (Menards). My Home Depot and Lowe's only stock 12' 4x4 pressure treated.

Sure did 👍

Home Depot and Lowe’s in my area don’t carry 14’ but Menards (Midwest store) does 👍

I was just using the standard measurement App that comes on iPhone. I image most of the free versions would have the bubble level option.

Thanks for the feedback and I will be doing that for sure in the next month or so.

@@everydaysolar that’s awesome! I hope you’ll cover the mounts used to attach brackets to the roof. Curious about your opinion on QuickBolt QB2 if you’ve tried them.

Yep, that is doable and would probably make the legs just a bit wider if I were to place casters under the legs.

I'm in the same boat. The mount maxes out at 44" panels. However if you don't use the mid or end clips they give you and instead use T bolts I believe you can scoot the panels closer together and make it work. That's my plan anyway. Or bolt the panels to the rails from below and put the panels touching side by side. Max length on the horizontal rails is 179.5".

Yep, that should work but if you would like to bring all 4 pieces of rail together for the top and the 4 together for the bottom you would need 1 additional bracket/splice kit. Also you might want to confirm the dimensions on your panels just to make they will fit. I think most 400 Watt panels are good but some of the jumbo 500+ Watt panels would be pushing it.

Just think of them like batteries where you can combine them in series or parallel to get the voltage and amps you want for your system.

They sell a extension kit for it

Yep, you are right if you install all the grounding clips you would only have to have a grounding lugs on one of the rails.

That depends entirely on the UL listing for the bonding of the clamps or other rail-to-module-to-rail bonding method. Not all products are the same, nor do they qualify.

Well a quick call and look at the manual answered the question. The old mount did not have the solar mounts as the new mount has 30/35/40 mm end and mid clamp mounts. Nothing else needed to buy.

Thanks for circling back and letting us know 👍

Yeah, I think you could break this ground mount into 2 different kits. In order to recommend some panels it would be good to know what you are running those panels into for a portable power station or charge controller. That can help to get panels that will fit the voltage and current specs.

The 51"was straight off the installation instructions. I am sure you could adjust a couple inches left or right if needed.

I do not, I has seen a few guys do the vertical mounts but I think they were just making a custom setup from difference types of fence posts or 4x4 posts.

@@everydaysolarThanks!

Consider using a scrap rear wheel bearing assembly taken from a car. Bad for the car, good for 1 rpm a day. free at repair garage.

I wonder if the lazy susan bearing would rust and not hold up to the elements since it is designed for indoor use. 🤔

@@everydaysolar will there be possible way to make it rust proof?

Just the standard measurement app that comes with iPhone and Android. There is a bubble level option.

I use 6 gauge bare ground wire.

@@everydaysolar Thank you, another trip to Home Depot! FYI, I followed your board base very closely except I used a 2x8 for the long board. I now have four Talesun 400W Bifacial panels mounted, but it did take some "stretching" of the rails as they are 44.6" wide. My stretch section needs improvement but it's mounted for now. My EG4 6000XP inverter and two batteries arrive tomorrow, I hope to be generating my own solar power soon.

Would it hold by using 4 earth anchors at each foot alternating front and rear?

I just cut 8' posts in half, so 4'each. If I did it again I think I would get some 10'or 12' posts. They are stable but wouldn't be bad to have a little longer legs.

What do you think is a better option. I also agree for a permanent installation I would be setting some sonotubes below the frost line and making a proper footing.

@@everydaysolar Thanks for the reply. I did some more math and at 12.5 bags of concrete each footing weighs ~1000 pounds and you need four of them! That's how they get away without sinking footings but I think it's a bad idea and a lot of people are not using enough footing for the racking. I think it's a good idea to run 12" sonotubes down ~ 4 feet, which also depends on your frost line. What I do in our northern winter climate is stick a couple of pieces of rebar through the sonotube a few inches from the bottom but you can also raise the sonotube up a little to allow the concrete to form a bulb at the bottom but this uses more concrete. A four foot sonotube with a crowned top for water runoff. A four foot tube uses ~5 bags of 80 pound premixed concrete. You can use the expansion bolts that came with the racking you have but make sure the concrete is set for a few days before tightening the nuts. Youi don't need to have one four foot sonotube for one panel, that's poor design by them but they have to because it's only 17" below ground plane. You can get away with 6 or 8 tubes for 12 panels just lag a string of treated wood to the tops of the footings and bolt their aluminum base to it, that should be adequate. Personally I'd do it with six footings for 12 panels. Here's some basic math: Most panels run ~40" wide placed vertically. 12 panels will equal ~40 feet, 6 footings will give you a span of ~ 6-2/3 feet. You can get away with 2x6 or 2x8 treated lumber on top of the footings with that span and weight without any problems. Each panel only weighs ~45 pounds so 2x6 is cheap and easy.

I have 455 watt Solarever panels, each mount holds 4 easily