Ground base array wiring to house
Rossman
Solar Expert Posts: 178 ✭✭
G'day all,
I am looking to wire my solar array up to the inverter in the house. The ground mounted array is about 150' away from the house, and our soil is extremely rocky, we cannot dig a trench the required depth specified by the NEC due to poor soil conditions/bedrock (not only that but there is 3" of snow on the ground right now :grr ). I am looking for some options and hope someone here might have some ideas. Seems like one of the options allowed in the code is to lay the conduit in whatever trench i could scratch out and then bury it in concrete. Thats going to be a lot of concrete to mix up, and it's mighty cold for trying to set up concrete anyway.
I am not sure if there are any other techniques to come across this distance above ground...is something as absurd as building a fence from the array to the house, and mounting sch40 pvc on the fence as a conduit, work?? It seems a bit crazy, but I'm willing to entertain options here! I am going to need to figure something out sooner rather than later as winter is only getting worse.
Thanks all in advance
I am looking to wire my solar array up to the inverter in the house. The ground mounted array is about 150' away from the house, and our soil is extremely rocky, we cannot dig a trench the required depth specified by the NEC due to poor soil conditions/bedrock (not only that but there is 3" of snow on the ground right now :grr ). I am looking for some options and hope someone here might have some ideas. Seems like one of the options allowed in the code is to lay the conduit in whatever trench i could scratch out and then bury it in concrete. Thats going to be a lot of concrete to mix up, and it's mighty cold for trying to set up concrete anyway.
I am not sure if there are any other techniques to come across this distance above ground...is something as absurd as building a fence from the array to the house, and mounting sch40 pvc on the fence as a conduit, work?? It seems a bit crazy, but I'm willing to entertain options here! I am going to need to figure something out sooner rather than later as winter is only getting worse.
Thanks all in advance
Comments
There was a guy here who got around the concrete thing by laying a hardwood board walk. The thread was called something like "gulf island off grid".
Here: http://forum.solar-electric.com/showthread.php?19610-Gulf-Island-Off-Grid-System-Part-4/page4
I dont think there was a lot of change from megabucks on that install.
http://zoneblue.org/cms/page.php?view=off-grid-solar
The big question is: what will the AHJ allow?
From what you indicate the required burial depth is unrealistic to begin with. Honestly, wiring doesn't have to be that deep to be protected, especially in conduit. It's not like it freezes! You just have to protect it from reasonable expectations of physical damage. Some authorities have trouble with defining "reasonable" though.
Thanks guys, I guess there aren't too many ways to go about this.
Appreciate the feedback!
Cheers,
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