Is this something else we need to put into our contracts?
"Not responsible for sounds due to normal thermal expansion and
contraction of racking, modules, and roof".....
Ray Walters
Remote Solar
On 10/20/2021 2:58 PM, Jason Szumlanski wrote:
These were Black framed Axitec panels. The clowns used zip ties (which
were all over the roof, brittle and broken). There wasn't a single
metallic wire clip on site.
This went on for 6 months, with no discernable improvement or
worsening according to the client. It was every day and night in every
climate. I'm quite baffled.
She thought she was being burglarized the first night. Then she hired
a pest/vermin company thinking it was racoons. It didn't take long to
put two and two together and realize it was coming from the solar
array. But the original contractor couldn't figure it out.
Pic attached of what's there now.
Jaso
On Wed, Oct 20, 2021, 3:55 PM Nick A Lucchese <luccheseso...@me.com>
wrote:
Hello Jason,
I installed a 36 module array on a standing seam metal roof in
June that I observed “tinging” sounds while working on it over a
few days. It also employed the Ironridge UFO system but differs in
that mine connected to the standing seams with L-feet paired with
S-5! clamps and every single bolt and set screw was hand tightened
and torqued to specifications. At first I thought a couple of my
metal Acme cable clips holding the PV wire under the frames were
popping off or letting down a conductor from it’s grasp but after
looking into it repeatedly I determined it was likely just small
expansion/contraction events. Temperatures were in the upper 90’s
and they’re the black REC 365 modules. The building sits away from
the client’s house so if it were still occurring likely know one
would notice but I did not notice it the few times I was there
working on other details on slightly cooler days. However, if it
continued to occur the way I had heard it I could see how it would
get the attention of someone if it were a habitable structure.
Nick A Lucchese
> On Oct 19, 2021, at 1:04 PM, Jason Szumlanski
<ja...@floridasolardesigngroup.com> wrote:
>
> Someone reached out to me who had a PV system installed two
years ago by another contractor on her shingle roof. Almost
immediately it started having loud popping noises intermittently,
but pretty consistently day to day. The homeowner thought it
sounded like expansion and contraction. That made sense, so the
original contractor came back multiple times to tighten things up.
The problem never went away and lasted about 6 months until it was
driving her crazy and she had the panels only removed. The sounds
stopped. Legal proceedings ensued. Everything was dropped and she
now has rails up, panels in garage, and no clamps.
>
> The panels have been in her garage for 18 months. I went to
inspect today. She has Quickmount LMount flashings, Ironridge
XR100 rails and had UFOs. The UFOs were tightened so much that
they were tearing the t-bolts out of the top channel of the rail.
I don't know if that was from the original installation or after
they came back to try to resolve the issue. The UFOs had also dug
in pretty deeply to the top of the module frames. None of the
glass was broken.
>
> I could not find much evidence of module frames slipping on the
rails and causing marks. The flashings and L-feet are all properly
installed in trusses at 48 or 24-in centers. The square bolts
securing the L-feet to rails are all tight and show no evidence of
slippage. The attic looks great. 5/8 ply over manufactured trusses
(southern pine). It's a Gable roof with about 20 feet eave to
ridge. Again, everything looks great in the attic.
>
> There are two rows of panels. I thought maybe the two rows were
rubbing on each other. But I could not find any evidence on the
short sides of the modules that would suggest this was the problem.
>
> Has anyone seen this issue before? I'm thinking about putting a
few test panels back up with standard mid clamps rather than UFOs
just to see if that changes anything.
>
> Jason Szumlanski
> Florida Solar Design Group
> _______________________________________________
>
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