Saturday, May 30, 2009

How the Panels are Attached

Somebody somewhere was asking about the hardware that actually attaches the panels to the roof. At the time I wasn't really certain about it but now I know more from snooping around on the job site.

A series of brackets is screwed into the roof (right through the shingle) using a washer and 3/8" bolt that's 2 1/2 " long. Here is a set uninstalled:



And here is a set installed:


I just went up in the attic to confirm that each of these bolts are screwed into a rafter, not just through the roof plywood.

Each bracket/bolt is gooped up with what E.F. called "thirty year sealer." It looks like tar -- you can see some of it on the brackets in both of the previous pictures.


The rails that the panels will be attached to are screwed onto a row of these brackets:


It ends up looking like this:


That makes this a rather permanent installation. If we decided for some reason to remove the panels and rails from the roof we'd have hundreds of 3/8" holes that go right through the shingle and plywood and into the rafter. That's not going to happen, but yes, theoretically it would be a problem (just answering the question).

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi Dave,
simple solution to problems with your electric company. NJPUC (new Jersey Public Utilities Commission). My experience with them vs. phone or electric is that
you get a fast response from the company since complaints to teh PUC go against tehm when they go looking for rate increases. For the most part you can file complaints on line and the offending company usually responds in 24 hours or less and the call comes from people fairly high up.
Hope this helps!