Solar panels on roof

[Stevieboy]

Is the glass on rigid panels tempered? Any issues with hail damage to roof-mounted glass panels?

[Steve and Rosemary]

Originally Posted by Len S

Have you ever tried to contact the manufacturer to see if they have any suggestions as to roof support issues or suggestions ? ... Again , manufacturers ( or dealers) suggestion are a good way to go as there is so much miss-information out there. Don't waste the bucks ; get a good quality solar panel and regulator and you won't be sorry. Good luck.

Thanks so much for your advice! I absolutely intend to contact Bigfoot but the problem is that they don't make these 5th wheels anymore. I'm hopeful that they'll have an answer but am also interested in the practical experience of current owners of this particular trailer type.

I really appreciate your reminder to ask manufacturers for their recommendations because, as you said, there is a lot of misinformation out there. My rule is to have several grains of salt nearby when asking for anecdotal evidence of any kind.

Thanks again for the reminder and thanks also for the vote of confidence. I think we're going to love solar!

[Steve and Rosemary]

Originally Posted by Stevieboy

Is the glass on rigid panels tempered? Any issues with hail damage to roof-mounted glass panels?

I'm not sure if it's tempered, but I'm assuming it is. I think there is a chance of hail damage -- the rule of thumb I've heard is that if it can damage your roof, it could damage your panel but I don't know how accurate that is.

[Len S]

My 21 ft Bigfoot is a 98 model and have a glass solar panel on it for most of it's life and no issues. Not all solar panels are equal and having said that will try and explain. Research ( from manufacturers) on how various solar panels are made .... Your flexible solar panels are made from spraying silica material onto a plastic backing to make up the "cells". Vs your better quality glass panels which are made out of thinly sliced silica material that are mounted onto your glass cover and needs the rigidity and which is by far a more efficient system of producing electricity at lower light levels. Mine charges , even in cloudy days; but of course not at the level as a sunny day. May be a little more involved but this is just in a nut shell. The only similarity is the word "solar panel" with the various types.
AND as to whether the glass panel is tempered.. Yes it should be .

[Greg St]

Hi
I have a 94 bigfoot fifth wheel with solar panels. I bought the trailer used in 2008 and it had a rigid solar panel already installed. In 2016 the panel wasn't working anymore so I changed it out. I stayed with a rigid panel from Grape Solar. I installed the 160W panel which is 58" x 26". Both panels have mounting bracket that space them off the roof. I have not noticed any sagging in the area of the solar panel.
Cheers
Greg

[Martin in Fonthill]

I have a 1987 Bigfoot 5th wheel, A few years ago I installed a roof A/C. There was no problem with the strength of the roof, I simply cut the roof vent out and enlarged the opening to suit the A/C. The roof is a sandwich of fiberglass, 1" rigid foam and the interior skin with a few wood strips here and there.
Martin

[donniebob]

We bought a 1988 Bigfoot 5th wheel about 10 years ago. It had an A/C unit installed and part of the roof had bowed in. To make sure we would not have a problem, I created two trusses created by gluing together two, 3/4" birch covered plywood and cutting out the trusses.

This installation was part of a major rehab where I built all new cabinets and the trusses were tied into that project,

That was 6 years ago and there are no further problems.

Your 5th wheel is about 30 years old. The fiberglass will last forever. But, it wouldn't hurt to shore up the roof.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Len S

Your flexible solar panels are made from spraying silica material onto a plastic backing to make up the "cells".

Len, you might want to do some research on this. The backing on my Lensun panels is fiberglass, not sure how you could spray on the layers, and is built up layers including the photovoltaic cells, and topped with a super tough layer of EFTE material. I have walked (though carefully) on my panels with no issue.

Before folks knock the flexible panels they do need to do some research on newer systems. I did, and am impressed with what I found.

[Jim Bennett]

Here is a diagram of their make up.

[Steve and Rosemary]

Thanks Greg, Martin, and Donnie for your feedback about your rooves. It's good to know things don't go wrong with a little more weight.

Donnie, if you have any photos of how you added support, that'd be really helpful. Any ideas of how to add support without ripping the cupboards out would also be very useful.

Thanks everyone!

[Len S]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Len, you might want to do some research on this. The backing on my Lensun panels is fiberglass, not sure how you could spray on the layers, and is built up layers including the photovoltaic cells, and topped with a super tough layer of EFTE material. I have walked (though carefully) on my panels with no issue.

Before folks knock the flexible panels they do need to do some research on newer systems. I did, and am impressed with what I found.

Hi Jim;
Thanks for the input but you may have been reading someone else's findings or comments. All I stated was the basic difference between a flexible and a solid solar panel with no brand names mentioned and each manufacturer has their own method and materials used. I could quote dozens of sites that get into specifics but chose not to in order to keep it simple. The word "plastic" is a general term and could be made from hundreds of differing materials. I will still stand on the fact that the sliced silica material makes a better "solar panel" than the flexible sprayed type.
If you like the flexible type , great . Each user can make up their own mind as to how much they want to spend on quality.


The Solar panel development will keep evolving as time goes on for lower cost and better performance .

[garbonz]

LOTS of problems reported on flex panels recently. RV with Tito for one, I'm not lost I am RVing for 2. Seems like some really cheap stuff is out in the market. Be careful and get a them from a reputable company and don't mount them in a way that is hard to remove.

Bigfoots are built like a tank, at least my 2005 TC was. a solar panel is NO problem regardless of weight. AC may be another issue I guess.

[Steve and Rosemary]

Originally Posted by garbonz

LOTS of problems reported on flex panels recently. RV with Tito for one, I'm not lost I am RVing for 2. Seems like some really cheap stuff is out in the market. Be careful and get a them from a reputable company and don't mount them in a way that is hard to remove.

Bigfoots are built like a tank, at least my 2005 TC was. a solar panel is NO problem regardless of weight. AC may be another issue I guess.

Thanks for this information; I watch both of those channels regularly and hadn't seen their recent issues with flex panels. In fact, it was RV with Tito that was giving more confidence in the flexible panels!

I'm very confident in the quality of my Bigfoot's build but because so many people have had issues with roof sag, I didn't want to risk it. The fact is, our preference is probably for a more portable solar setup which could use either type of panel. I was thinking of making some window awnings a la RV with Tito, but I guess I'll have to reconsider.

Thanks again!

[tomlee01]

You can ask each solar panel business to give you a perfect solution.

[oldwave]

One of the problems with flexible panels is heat as there is no ventilation under. I’d mount a bi-facial panel for the best performance.

[Perryb67]

This is a thread from 2018, and I’m sure most have moved on since then.

Enjoy,

Perry

[Eggcentric]

Originally Posted by Steve and Rosemary

Hi all,

We're trying to develop a solar panel/PV system for our new-to-us Bigfoot 5th wheel. One concern for us is to roof of this 30-year-old trailer. Given that it doesn't have an AC, we're pretty confident there isn't much extra support in the roof. So:

Would you consider 2-4 15-lb "rigid" panels a risk to the roof's integrity or not? Ours has a luggage rack on the back but we don't know if that indicates integrity or is more of a decoration.

The other option is to use much lighter, "flexible" panels but they don't have the durability or life span of the rigid panels and cost almost the same.

Note that we'd like to have it mounted on the roof so when we're away from the trailer, we don't have to worry about someone taking it. That said, we'll probably make the brackets such that the panels can be removed and made "portable".

Any advice is welcome! Thanks!

There is no better way to mount panels on the roof than with fiberglass.
Have done a variation on this several times always with excellent results.
Lay out where you want the panel(s) I usually just use one larger panel.
where you want the panels to go mark the edges out on the roof, grind off the gelcoat about 3 inches wide along two edges/sides of the panels.
Have the fiberglass cloth cut out two layers of cloth and two of mat,the length of the panel and about 3" wide for the bottom layer of mat and about 6 or 7 wide for the cover. Make pieces of wood /\ about 1.5" wide at the base and about 3/4 wide on top height about 1 or 1 1/2 high but thin enough to bend to fit the shape of the roof wash the ground off area with acetone paint the area with resin, lay a layer of mat, wet it out so there is no air bubbles, lay the wood in the center of the wetted mat, lay another layer of mat over the whole and wet it out making sure you have no air bubbles, then lay two layers of cloth over the whole wet it out, then either at that time or next day paint the whole with gel coat. the top hat girders will have strengthened the roof immensly and will last the life of the trailer. Put the panels on the girders using suitably sized aluminum L cut to length and screwed to the girder.
Put your panels up there and forget them except for an occasional washing.
Anyone who tells you that it will not be strong enough has no experience with fiberglassing structures.
My tupperware Sunrader, & my Bowler, and my sailboat were done this way with thousands of miles and a total of 20 years of completely forgettable use.
If you do it this way and bring the power down either throuthe fridge vent or inside the sewer vent and you have a completely leak proof installation.