Construction Stage Part 3
Last update of this page : 07 June 2006
See home page http://home.iprimus.com.au/fredb19/solarhouse/house01.htm for additional photographs and technical detail.
PHOTO 1
Photo 1 is the view looking down the hallway towards the canal.. The blue gum timber dropped down ceiling is in place. This ceiling is over the tiled, hallway section and has been designed to provide a virtual room division between lounge/dining room and the outside patio area. This virtual dividing line provides a division between the areas, but does not reduce the spaciousness we have tried to design into the rooms.
PHOTO 2
Photo 2 shows the glass enclosed sitting room. This room has a floating, blue gum floor that corresponds with the dropped blue gum ceiling immediately above. The low set louvre frames will have timber louvres installed to provide low level privacy and ventilation.
PHOTO 3
Photo 3 shows the blur gum floating floor in the kitchen. The timber floor boards are hidden nailed to floor bearers suspended at each end to provide a degree of "springiness" (nice and easy to walk on). The spaces beneath the floorboards are loosely filled with insulation sound batts to promote quietness.
PHOTO 4
Photo 4 shows the Solar equipment plant room under construction. The PSA inverter is mounted on the wall on the right. The panel underneath has the fused switching for battery and solar panel wiring, the Plasmatronics Solar Regulator, the wind generator monitor and control box. The Regulator has since been updated with an Outback MX-60 Maximum Power Point Tracker unit. The small blue item in the middle of the panel is a pair of "Magnapulse" devices that are reputed to prevent battery deterioration by impressing a large, reverse polarity, high voltage, very short-duration spike into the battery terminals. The effect is unable to be scientifically explained, but there is a lot of evidence that it reduces battery sulphation and extends battery life. It will be interesting to see if it does so! The large box is the ventilated battery enclosure containing just over a tonne deadweight in wet cell batteries.
PHOTO 5
Photo 5 showing some of the 24 Unisolar photovoltaic panels which will be mounted on the eastern end of the roof. These panels are mounted in 4-panel, tilting frames. Behind the installed panels are the empty frames awaiting panel installation. The solar hot water system (a Beasley 330 litre stainless steel tank with all copper absorber panels) has been installed.
PHOTO 6
Photo 6 shows work underway fitting and wiring the 24 Unisolar panels on the western end of the building. Note the panels on the right are in approximate winter season tilt to maximise energy production. Wiring is a tedious and exacting task that is taking much longer than we expected.
PHOTO 7
Photo 7 is a view along the roof towards the east. There will be twelve frames, each containing 4 panels, giving a total of 48 panels when installation has been completed. Each frame of 4 panels is capable of being tilted and locked in place at three different angles to maximise yearly energy production. Those laying flat on the 7 degree pitch roof are in "summer" position. Each six panels are series connected for 72 volts, wired back to a central junction box where they are paralled connected and the output fed by 70 mm squared cable back to the energy plant room, a distance of about 40 metres. The maximum current through these cables, under ideal conditions, is approximately 43 amps at 72 volts.
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