INCREASING Solar Panel Output for CHEAP!

[@IncognitaLabs]

To test the power from rear illumination simply cover the panels themselves.. what you have left after they are covered on the front is what is being added from the rear.... this makes it easy to test.

[@schirmcharmemelone]

not true. the panels will be considerably colder increasing efficiency. this would make it look like as if back illumination would add way more power than it actually does.

[@oliveraurich9642]

not at all, as the panels themselves leave light through and with the cover you avoid rear illumination but not the reflection of the light going through panels (and reflection from the cover).

[@defaultHandle1110]

Just add the reflector and collect data on power output before and after and also log temperature on back and front of panels as well as a control surface panel , not reflected.

[@stephenbaker3680]

Ok on the light colored rear gravel. But for God SAKE. I HOPE..your excessively long wire run uses sufficient cable sizing! What's it..?..300 ft.? Wheeeew. Otherwise..Kudos!

[@stephenbaker3680]

Oh!..I forgot..The wire run resistance is for the negative as WELL as the positive lead. So DOUBLE to that 300ft..so 600ft x the per foot resistance factor for the guage.

[@ShaneZettelmier]

It’s pretty cool, that’s a pretty significant boost. I think another thing that would help would be to raise the panels up off the ground so you had less of a shadow space. If you lifted those 6 feet off the ground, you would eliminate more than half of that shadow space, and increase the amount of reflection that would affect the bottom of the panels I would think. 🤔

[@TKCL]

That's been a very popular suggestion.

[@enricod.7198]

@@TKCL if they are lifted up you can put the reflector underneath it and reduce the overall area footprint of the system while boosting the back panel face even more.

[@Rainbow_Oracle]

@@enricod.7198 I like this back reflector in the sense that it can be much smaller than the sq. ft. area of the panels. You can do a lot with just a little. Maybe you can get more output covering the square footage but then you have to buy rolls of stuff. You do run into up-front higher costs as well as diminishing returns for what you spend. This is easy breezey cheap as it is and I like that!

[@winterradicallds8353]

Nice I did the exact same thing I painted my rocks white and that worked amazingly well then I added a reflective panel like you did and that completed it and everything charges really well and I added white glow rocks around the panels and now it charges even at night for about 3 hours although its not much of a charge being at night but I was very surprised to see that it actually works, thank you for the video

[@EpicDeception]

As in glow in the dark pebbles? Can you elaborate?

[@OfftoShambala]

When you are broke in California and gas is over 5 bucks a gallon… you pick up any and all change you find on the ground. lol every tiny bit adds up… thanks for sharing! I will play with that!

[@OfftoShambala]

When you are broke in California and gas is over 5 bucks a gallon… you pick up any and all change you find on the ground. lol every tiny bit adds up… thanks for sharing! I will play with that!

[@Rainbow_Oracle]

Seriously what kind of glowy rock? Because that is bloody amazing! Moonlight is technically sunlight but it usually not enough to even energize an inverter much less flow usable power. If you can get power AT NIGHT for that long from glow rocks that can be game changing! Murray Smith already experimented with hi-lighter fluid to show that solar panels do respond to phosphorescence. Makes me wonder how well they might respond to something mildly phosphorescent and slightly radioactive like the yellow uranium ore used in ceramics.

[@InventPeace1]

I think when you get the night charging, its from the earth cooling down emitting radiative thermal energy which amazingly seems to get collected by simple solar panels, Neat. InventPeaceNotWar

[@johnstark4723]

BTW, been doing a test of my own. I don't have bifacial panels but while working on angling the panels on top of my TT I found that having the front set of panels laying flat and the back set angled I gained a lot of power. The reflection off the flat panels helped the back get more light. Usually from around 2:30 on I lose a lot of power whether it's sunny or not due to trees. However since laying the front panels down I am more than doubling my power from 2:30 on. Cloudy days I was lucky to get 3 to 4 kwh but now regularly get 5 to 6 plus kwh. Even now where it's been cloudy since 1:30 today I'm over 6.1kwh with an hour and a half of daylight or so to go and still getting 485 watts. Before I'd get around 145 watts with the panels all angled.

[@davidrhp847]

As you get closer to high reflection on the back you might want to protect the connectors and wires from the light/heat.

[@putinscat1208]

If he is only reflecting and not concentrating sunlight, would this really be a problem? He could use thicker wires to compensate, or lower the current.

[@incognito253]

@@putinscat1208 Correct, you're only reflecting here, with far less than perfect albedo. The effect on the wiring is almost certainly less than the effect of them just being in direct sunlight.

[@1089up]

I experimented with 4x8 galvanized tin. They reflected ok but there was a ton of heat as well. I found it much more useful to lay grain storage plastic on the ground under the panels. This are white, UV treated and have so far lasted 5yrs. Super bright under panels and bright enough that sunglasses are required.

[@PersonalStash420]

@@1089up grain storage plastic? What is that?

[@1089up]

@@PersonalStash420 Grain farmers use these to store grain in the field for the winter as apposed to hauling to a grain bin. Heavy tube shaped thick gauge plastic bag that is cut by machine to length they need, but can be easy 50yrds long. When emptied they are rolled up and disposed of. But if you can find them they have many use's and are long lasting. White on the outside, black underneath and UV treated

[@jamesrcoleii4577]

Elevate the panels and add the reflected surface under the panels. This should give you a 10% increase or more in your system. I live completely off grid here in the West Texas Desert close to El Paso Texas and we have to set it up so we can get the best power rating we can get so we have fully charged batteries and the system runs through the night. We are not running Bi facial panels but I might just have to get me some.

[@zacharylewis417]

Great video. For anyone up north bifacial is the way to go if you can ground mount. I found bifacial to be really beneficial for colder climates. Those cloudy/winter days is where it shines.

[@RigepFroggit]

also if you're more interested in being usable in places with lots of rain and cloudy weather instead of the monocrystal panels get polycrystalline panels. Not as efficient but can pull at least some charge out of overcast days with poor weather when monocrystalline panels won't produce at all.

[@serversurfer6169]

There are roof coatings that reflect 98% of light. You could paint panels with something like that to help gather light. 💡🤓

[@Brit_in_Mindanao]

I'm going to be searching for that here in the philippines, just what I need

[@ecospider5]

There are some test that show in some situations vertical bifacial panes mounted vertically actually are the best idea. And some have even had the panels facing east west not south. The reason this works so well is the cooling effect. Panels that heat up drop in efficiency enough to be a problem

[@RJvanVeen]

Uni in Netherlands has tested and what you said is the best option.

[@1xXNimrodXx1]

Its not only the cooling effect, its also how the shadow is projected from those panels.

[@ThatGuyPal88]

I’ve heard that as well, I wanted to try it but I’m scared that wind & the debris it kicks up might damage the panels!

[@PersonalStash420]

I have the panels on my shed facing east and west. I looked it up before I installed them and I didn't lose much doing it that way, maybe 15% if I remember correctly.

[@ecospider5]

@PersonalStash420 I have it on all 4 sides of my house. The East West panels are about 15% lower than the South panels. So that sounds about right. My roof is a 4/10 pitch so I get 70% in the summer and 50% in the winter on my north panels

[@xraykadiddlehopper8067]

I bought three of those 200w bifacial mounted on a ecoworthy rack mounted on a base that I put 6” swivel dolly wheels on for mobility. I used an RV windshield aluminum shade behind it works very well with the reflective panel behind and easily movable as needed. 👍

[@TKCL]

That is awesome!

[@malk6277]

Don't know if this provides some perspective for some folks, but that 70 W gain you saw with the reflective panel is roughly the equivalent of the full rated power of my solar on the Landcruiser I lived in for 18 months back in 2006/2007. I had a single 80 W panel and a deep cycle lead acid for storage (can't remember the Ah). It was just enough to run an Engel fridge/freezer for maybe a couple of days without driving. That's a meaningful gain for sure! I suppose in today's terms, you're getting enough extra juice to charge a power hungry laptop. Can't hurt, right!

[@SapioiT]

If you add reflective stainless metal sheets both on the ground and on the hinged wall you were talking about, then that would help increase the gain even more, because the panels would use both the first reflection (sun-mirror-panels) and the second reflections (sun-mirror-mirror-panels).

[@stevenpadilla4289]

I have a suggestion. Its basically a mirror effect. But using some plexi and using a mirror tint to the back of it and use it similar to the bubble wrap. Its much more durable then the bubble wrap and hardier then mirror and should give you a similar effect!

[@Mikaci_the_Grand_Duke]

You'll probably get the best results with a bright white background. The problem with flat mirroring objects is that they reflect light in a specific direction, which means that at certain times of day, you lose all the extra light that is reflected in the wrong direction. You need diffuse reflection or parabolic mirroring.

[@danadams1137]

Parabolic is the way to go. You need polished aluminum. But overall this system that he is installed behind the panels is actually worthless. When summer comes those panels depending on what latitude you're will be flat or pretty close to being perfectly flat on the ground. The only way to overcome that problem would be to raise the panels in the air. The higher you put the panels the greater the shadow that's cast behind it. If you still want to go ahead with this you have to still use the parabolic setup but it would have to be further back behind where the shading is. Furthermore you'd have to have additional reflection underneath the panels to get the solar arrays reflected for a second time. I do not use bifacial panels. I have some panels that face the sun in the east in the morning . The majority of my panels face due south. And then I've got six more of that face the West so I can catch the Sun almost until 9:00 at night in the summertime

[@Wrenchmonkey1]

A parabolic mirror will concentrate the sun energy in the form of extreme heat. You can hit several hundred degrees with a parabolic mirror focusing direct sunlight. You'll destroy your panels with that much focused heat. Heat kills panels.

[@Mikaci_the_Grand_Duke]

@Wrenchmonkey1 True, that would create too much heat. Maybe combining the two solutions is the best way to go, using a parabolic mirror shaped white, or diffuse surface, so not all the heat is directly concentrated. Or maybe just moving the panels a bit out of focus.

[@Wrenchmonkey1]

@@Mikaci_the_Grand_Duke Parabolic white reflectors is a really interesting idea.

[@PersonalStash420]

actually, flat white reflects the best. At least that's what pot growing research has determined. You can't argue with Bro science. 😃

[@VictorPoulin]

You will know when you have the best reflection on the back of your panels because the shadow will be less dark on the ground.

[@johnhershiser4340]

I used some mirrors, that can be purchased from thrift shops or discount stores, which greatly increased the watts.

[@chuckfinley5206]

Got a place that gives me large mirrors and smaller picture frames.

[@tiggeroush]

Check your temperature. Mirrors can cook your panels and greatly shorten their life.

[@ajarivas72]

​@@tiggeroushCool them with water

[@arnecarlsson9740]

Andy, You are a premier explainer and researcher among the best, if not the best! Many thanks for your efforts! 👍👍👍

[@TKCL]

Thank you for the kind words

[@pampilgrim2274]

I totally agree.

[@kim.in.nature.]

This was GREAT! One of your best videos yet, IMO. I have the 100 w Ecoflow foldable bi facial panels, so the reflective bubble wrap will help speed up charging. Thank you for taking the time doing all the 'tests' to save us the guesswork.

[@TKCL]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@bobflores]

Interesting results from your testing. You can get reflective mylar sheets. Amazon has 48" x 10' rolls for $26. You can get longer rolls for more money, obviously. It'll be a little more reflective than the bubble wrap. I believe that a curved surface will be able to passively track the sun better than a flat panel. Since you're not going to use the area behind the solar panels you could build a radiused reflective wall behind the panel and test how it tracks the sun without having to move the reflective wall. You could even try different height and radii to see which follows the sun better. The styling of the new EcoFlow looks cool. I'll be looking forward to your review. I expect it to be an amazing product.

[@TKCL]

Definitely an idea/project to consider.

[@andylutube]

Good work, lots of knowledge and effort getting good results!

[@KevinLyda]

It all adds up. What you're doing won't reduce your power. Panels are super cheap. I maxed out what i could put in and it supplies one third of my electricity - and I use electricity for everything: heat, home and car. Being able to make my own energy sure beats handing over money to petroleum companies!

[@treepop1550]

Amazing diy channel. You are helping to educate, provide practical information,inspire others to save money and help the environment. Channels like yours is what makes youtube worthwhile instead of dramatic and political/controversial. Well done !

[@TKCL]

Agreed! No time for drama here.

[@janosszabo98]

Nice words, but unfortunately in this case it's the blind leading the blind. There's nothing practical or educational in this video. These panels preform best upright and in an east west orientation. This video is just a random guy shooting in the dark, hitting miles off target. I certainly hope you don't consider this educational.

[@TKCL]

Says the person saying pointing a panel exactly opposite of the sun is best. Videos all over KZbin disproving this "theory". At this point I'll test this since there's been enough people curious about it.

[@janosszabo98]

@@TKCL It's not exactly pointing "opposite to the sun" though, is it? It's more like one side facing the rising sun until midday, then the other side facing the setting sun ... you guessed it, until sunset. And both sides collecting reflected light all day. You clearly are not qualified to run this test (same as the others who "disproved" this), so don't bother. Or do it, give us more to laugh at.

[@thesurvivalist.]

Bifacial Poly Crystallines for me! Most days there are cloudy, especially during Autumn and Winter Months, but even during all months. Polyscrystallines still produce.

[@kamikazekunze]

Vertically mount bifacial’s to complement the regular system you have.

[@bold58]

The thought came to me that one way around any inverter problems is to use as many dc appliances as possible . I have a small dc refrigerator that my panels run just fine . Also a dc coffee pot and a small dc water heater .

[@HighDollarHobo]

My dc coffee pot works so slowly 12v but it's almost unbelievable how slow and awful it works compared to ac.. now I wonder if there's better dc coffee pots out there

[@bold58]

@@HighDollarHobo probably . If there is a 24 volt version it might be quicker . My 12 v coffee pot is not too bad but not quite as quick as my AC. My ac is about 15 to 20 min. My DC is about 25 min.

[@HighDollarHobo]

@@bold58 thanks for replying.. my small coffee pot cobra from truck stop brand is worse I think maybe cut the car plug end off incase It restricts flow ill keep trying it I don't mind 10 more mins but not 30 mins

[@billbradley2480]

I’m using some 240 watt PV panels I purchased used from SanTan Solar. They were $48 each a few years ago.

[@NickWindham]

VOC open circuit voltage increases significantly as temperature decreases. If you’re in an area that gets really cold, you’ll need to go a couple panels less than you would. If you just total, their open circuit voltage in the south should go at least one panel less. Because this is so important to not fry your inverter, it’s best to Google online calculators that use a formula that includes the temperature coefficient of your panel, which is on the label on the back just like all these other specs

[@realeyesrealizereallies6828]

I did something very similar..My ground mount is built with two, 4x4 posts on each end, using 2x6's to make my rectangle, with some metal strut to attach my panels..The 4x4 posts have a ten inch screw going through them and the 2x6's allowing the whole thing to be tilted up and down..I built a platform under on of the 4x4's and attached 4 wheels, the other 4x4 is in the ground about 3 feet, and is connected to a bearing assembly..That way I can tilt my panels to get the right angle, and I can move the side with the wheels to follow the sun, while the other 4x4 spins in place..And I have the same reflectix stuff underneath..Those 3 different hacks allow me to get every bit of sunshine..The total increase over just a regular mount is around 50%..I should make a video, because I've never seen that done before..

[@VictorPoulin]

So my solar array is angled similar to yours but mine are around 3 to 4 feet off the ground. I'm currently laying mirrors flat on the ground just in front of the panels. They perfectly reflect the sun back onto the backside of the solar array down along the bottom 2 rows.

[@TKCL]

That's a good idea

[@Bowhunters6go8xz6x]

They sell Chromed Aluminum Sheets at Lowes, Home Depot, etc. that are almost like a mirror finish. Also I would recommend a Dual Axis Eco-Worthy Solar mount that will hold 4 decent sized panels (300watt) and will track the sun as it goes across the sky .

[@TKCL]

I've been curious about the tracking units.

[@Bowhunters6go8xz6x]

​@@TKCL - 40% more power produced over the day than the same identical panels just facing South in a fixed mount. Starts at about $500. and up depending on which solar panels you buy in the kit.

[@marcothehammer]

If you change the angle of the reflective material throughout the year (to better use the available sunlight) move the 'reflector' closer and farther away to increase the potential benefit. This is among your most fascinating videos, and it's hard to not love them all.

[@TKCL]

Thank you for watching

[@incognito253]

Point of order to what you say at 24:30 though you may have done the math already - you surmise with more effort you could get an increase of 10% with some back, side, taller, etc panels, but in the test you did you went from about 665 to 735 - that is already a 70 watt increase on the 665 which is more than a 10% increase just from the small 2' section of reflector just in the rear. Also of note, that 665 is already higher than the base your array was getting by about ~20 watts, just from the baseline reflectivity of adding a light-colored ground cover, so if you're comparing from your baseline of just grass/dirt you've gone from about 645 to 735 just with that 2' strip, which is a 14% increase in production. It's probably realistic to get a 25-30% increase in output from a truly optimized reflector system for bifacials. You can also potentially set up a reflector or reflectors that will squeeze some more light onto the front of your panels without interfering meaningfully with the rear reflectors, so with just some foil tape, framework, and elbow grease it's probably realistic to increase a bifacial ground mount array's productivity by 50% or even more.

[@josephbohme7917]

You have to reidirect the sunlight wih two panels to properly mirror the sun. 1-A at a ht behind and above the panel ht @ An axis ht about 4 ft. to get the sun to point half way to the panels and direct that A panel to another B shiny Panel placed on the ground halfway between. It will make much more light than your single reflector . Also if you lift the panels off the ground 2 more feet you can redirect more light at a harder more direct angle. 90+ 90 .

[@TKCL]

Thanks

[@haroldricker2077]

aluminum rolled flashing is highly reflective and durable for outdoors, maybe give it a clear coat. Can also make heat sinks out of aluminum sheeting to pull summer heat from panels.

[@basspig]

Putting down white crushed stone underneath the solar panels will greatly increase the ground reflectivity and that will have a dramatic Improvement on your bifacial panel output.

[@Chaos_God_of_Fate]

If you're worried about mirrors breaking and creating a mess you could always add a thin layer of something like Fiberglass or similar to car windows- a thin layer of some adhesive material so that if it does break it'll all stay together and not make a mess. Nice experiment! I love this sort of tinkering.

[@robertgreen7593]

How about a motorized turntable - with solar and reflector. A sundial with light sensors could tell the turntable where to point (the direction of the sensor that isn't getting light because it is in the shadow). Just do a poll every hour to make sure the turntable/sundial aren't using loads of power.

[@TKCL]

It's a thought 🤔

[@mapbike]

On the mirror subject as an option, you can actually get plastic mirrors, so no risk of shattering with those.

[@TKCL]

Nice!

[@Brit_in_Mindanao]

This absolutely answers the questions i had about using bifacial panels. I'm in the southern philippines near the equator with a steep pitch roof that has a clear view of the sky. I was considering mounting on a frame that extends from the ridge either side but is has a low angle leaving significant space underneath at the eaves. It looks like painting the roof white or with reflective paint will make a significant difference. The only problem I'll have on really sunny days is heat, it's consistently high 80s year round and 95 plus in summer. Thanks for the very informative video.

[@TKCL]

Heat definitely reduces panel efficiency, but that's part of it.

[@PrecisionGroupYT]

We have 9 x 195w Eco-Worthy regular panels and they have been working excellent!! Very happy with their performance with our Bluetti’s thus far!

[@OfftoShambala]

Very experienced gardener and landscaper… stuff will grow thru those rocks and if you weed whack to could take an eye out or anything glass… so you are left with weed hoing., hand pulling and poison… if you poison, you want to spray as seedlings start popping through. You could have put cardboard or landscape fabric beneath the rocks but eventually that doesn’t help… good news is, if you hoe when early growth comes through… that will be relatively easy work… don’t let anything green grow too long… if you stay on top of weeds for several years, you’ll have less to deal with in years to follow… but you’ll still need to stay on top of em … just be sure to do it when it’s easy. May take three to four outings each grow season.. in my area typically spring and fall. I suspect that’s similar for a lot of areas.

[@andrestapert7830]

my personal experience is very simple put a bake watertight sale beneath your solar panel then fill it up with three or four inches of water works perfectly

[@PeaceChanel]

Thank You for supporting Solar and for All that you are doing for our Planet Earth.... Peace.. Shalom.. Salam.. Namaste 🙏🏻 😊 🌈 ✌ ☮ ❤

[@johnathonmullis4234]

Mylar has good reflectivity and is economical. It like the blankets for emergencies or the window tint.

[@craig5365]

Bifacial panels are best with the from edge 42 inches off the ground. Gets them from out of their own shadow

[@pampilgrim2274]

Hi, Andrew! I’m not sure if I ever told you what I taught before I retired. It was science and math. Your experiments and building projects are very satisfying to my innate inquisitiveness. It’s like a science lab everyday on your channel. Thanks for all your hard work putting all these interesting posts on your KZbin channel. It makes me happy.

[@TKCL]

Science was my favorite subject in school.

[@pampilgrim2274]

@@TKCL wow! Most of my students were in my class because North Carolina requires the science I taught as a graduation requirement. I had to spice it up and make it fun for them. To demonstrate the effect of changing the freezing point of water, we made homemade ice cream. My principal loved that lab because I always sent him a large serving.

[@NomadRidgeRunner]

Enjoyed your report... focusing the sunlight and boosting the power collection! .. I've lived some 30 years, raised children, dogs, livestock, at 3 different locations in the sunny sagebrush mountains of Eastern Washington ...powered by 4 to 6 not bi-facial panels, a few 12V storage batteries, a charge controller, a gasoline sucking 5,000W+ generator for the deep well pumps, and a smaller, near10 hours on a gallon of gasoline, 2,500W generator for daily/nightly light and computers when their has not been enough sun thru the winter snow storms or summer forest fire smoke to keep the batteries up.. .. .. ... A couple places I had panels mounted on metal stands that I could pivot to optimize solar potential, as I walked by them several times during the day. .. .. My panels have always been just outside, not far from the house or cabin door making hand adjustment more casual, easier.. The past several years the panels have been mounted on a stable, not-pivoting, wooden frame I made. .. .. Weather can get and stay below 0 degrees F for extended time with lots of snow most winters. A couple winters back we had some 4 feet of snow in a few days. It got warm and then froze hard. With warmth the snow melts a bit, then freezing it gets hard as a rock. Ground mount does not work here. .. .. My panels are up on a raised frame to be out of the snow and above the height of our really big dogs that like to 'mark' things as theirs. .. One winter task is sweeping the snow and frost off the panels... .. Inspired by your video, I am redesigning my wooden frame to gain the reflected energy from our way abundant sunshine, and looking into the cost of some bi-facial panels. ...and thinking of those youtubes where folks took broken or cut mirror pieces, glued them to a curved frame ..to make solar cookers and cooked the chicken, etc. or aluminum foil.... .. Thanks for the demonstration.

[@michaelgkellygreen]

Cool video. Got an Eco Worthy 195w bi this week and the Max watts i get is 157. A little disappointing for a 195 panel. I'll be trying some reflection in order to boost my gains. A relatively cheap panel so you get what you pay for comes to mind.

[@TKCL]

True on all points. Bi facial is absolutely built to capitalize on rear reflection as well. I'm about to test some Eco Worthy NON bifacial 195 watt panels. I'm curious about the difference.

[@michaelgkellygreen]

@@TKCL that will be very interesting. I have two regular 100 watt panels from Doxio and they easily make 100 watts in ideal conditions. Wonder would an Ecoworthy do the same

[@min2oly]

In the long run wouldn't adding another panel be more cost effective...

[@gemrough]

Yes and would also make a bigger difference on overcast days.

[@ForbiddTV]

Here's a test suggestion; what if you had more solar panels similarly arranged in back? Although they are black, they are nonetheless REFLECTIVE due to the glass. To aid the effect you could have the panels in back at a steeper angle, just as you did with the bubble wrap.

[@majie1018]

You should try vertical mount. More reflectivity and less heat on the panels. And better in winter. No snow accumulation.

[@TheRagingUnprofessional]

One more note is if you made the bubble foil reflector concave, it can both gather more light as well as direct the light into a smaller focus to allow the panels to be exposed to a higher concentration of the reflected light. Good luck!

[@jeffwells641]

The reflective material in reflectix is just a thin layer of aluminum. You could polish up that aluminum panel and get the same results in a much more durable package.

[@TKCL]

I might do that

[@travismoore7849]

Mylar emergency blankets may be cheaper so you could coat a plywood with the mylar wrapper to make a reflector. Though anything cheap like that could work for a backing even a heavy sheet of acrylic. Also you may want to use marble limestone or something very reflective that is a white like a gypsom sand , titanium dioxide powder and maybe some powdered calcite and mix some very white mineral powders into your concrete. If you get a fluorescent powdwe like that is used in lights and mix it in concrete that could help too.

[@jhjustinlee]

You could even put some reflectors in the front as well single facial panels can be boosted as well by reflecting more on the front.

[@s.lionelmcauley4455]

If you are keen, try the same methods with the panel mounted verticle. I think you will be surprised with the results

[@gsestream]

vertical solar panels with v-shaped mirrors on back and front sides. solar trench can be made from a v-shaped ditch. yes its ground supported. just plain stainless sheet steel or just galvanized steel sheet is durable for large surface area. just aluminium paint the steel sheets. or just silver mirror paint.

[@RedRiverRedNeck309]

You need to make one and place in the front on the ground will a little angle and see with the two of them reflecting I bet you get closer to 100 watts more power of charging.

[@TKCL]

I think so too

[@pepsiaddict60]

Raise the panels farther from the ground, a bowl shape reflective, focusing towards the panels would give you a greater solar yield.

[@llN3M3515ll]

Recently saw an interesting video about Bifacial panels that were setup vertically facing east/west, they actually produced 10-15% more electricity then conventionally laid panels.

[@TKCL]

I've watched similar tests that show it produces less, erratic results on KZbin.

[@GadgetReviewVideos]

So panels have some weight and to automate adjusting the panels to follow the sun throughout the day in different seasons, would take another panel to power that adjusting system and hefty stepping motors. But to build a reflecting panel adjusting system should weigh less and smaller motors. And adjusting the reflector would give a big pay back and easier to automate. Just an idea, first thing I thought of.

[@stuartmarkman769]

Once the rocks dry well a coat of good whitewash will help in reflectivity. Just a thought. Great video.

[@Ryukachoo]

18:14 Thats an almost 10% jump for very little effort, im curious if sometbis similar would work on a roof? Maybe cover the roof with something reflective?

[@TechnikJens]

I think it's worth mentioning that filling the surroundings with stone material or concrete etc, will make them heat up by the sun and also store such heat. You may have hurt your feet while walking on hot sand or street, but never when waking on grass. Higher temperatures reduce efficiency by about 0.4 percent /k in PV cells. Also concrete or stone material will turn green by the time and then they do not reflect well. So I would not recommend to create such "dead" zone around the PV panels 🤗

[@hug243]

hi , very instructive . i dont know were you live but ,with bifacial you should have them at a higher angle in the winter , you will also have more reflectivity from the back . i have a camp mid Quebec , in summer it's really easy with solar , but winter days are short and the sun is really low. i did alot of test myself with angles and Shade , shade is your worst enemy . keep up the good work

[@Benedict-Seelemeyer-Lindsley]

Quartz rock very reflective, tin foil but mirrors are best and virtually weatherproof if protected but regarding mirrors you could usually find them on the side of the road people throwing old mirrors out so you can get it for free

[@k-sell4065]

Add an inline boost buck converter capable of handling voltage and amperage inline with output of solar to solar charger. You will have some drop but still get a decent charge rate to your battery bank

[@TheRagingUnprofessional]

Question: If they're getting increases off of background reflections, why not leave a couple feet of gap between each panel so they can pick up the light bouncing off the ground in between them? The spacing is effectively zero cost, and you've already proven you'll get returns by your cardboard test, so it's a net positive guaranteed.

[@cs7717]

I use the large roll of aluminum foil from Costco, their brand, for when I need reflection. It's super cheap, very reflective and you get hundreds of feet for less money than you spent on that reflective material. It's a very cheap, and super effective, mulch around my potted plants. I live in the Sonoran desert, where daytime summer temps regularly hit 120°F. Reflectivity is the critical key to keeping the temperature off of your plants roots. Maybe that same super reflectivity will work here for you, too.

[@TKCL]

We buy that same foil

[@TorchedRC]

Helps if you also raise them up. Also the box base of the frame is shading the underneath of the front significantly

[@berndkonemann5049]

I would have recommended to put a membrane on the grass before putting the gravel on top to prevent that weed can grow but he, it is a start.

[@davidlackey4873]

doing similar...but was planning on Tyvek house wrap instead of gravel...may use some sheet metal for back reflector and paint it with chrome paint, i;ve used and it looks like mirror...Tyvek might work as weed barrier too

[@goldcountryruss7035]

Raise the panels up on much longer legs, 42" under the bottom front of the panels is a good place to start. Next, get rid of the wooden box base. Use ground screws, drive posts into ground, or dig postholes & cement the legs to the ground. Gaps between the panels would allow a lot of light to get under the panels too.

[@TKCL]

Valid points

[@basspig]

With all the acreage you have it would be better to just simply add more panels and larger arrays. This will not only help you in sunlight but also when it's raining and cloudy. In fact you have enough acreage there you could put a half a megawatt of panels and you could make rain or rather electric power in the worst thunderstorms.

[@kencotton4645]

I was watching your reflection experiments today. If I was building the reflector, I would use a 2x2 along the top and bottom over the bubble wrap to prevent the wind from getting under the edges.

[@leondavibe]

if you disable the auto retrun to home screen , you don't have to wear out the buttons to get back to the pv power menu item, by staying on the one you last selected

[@daddio7249]

I have a large system, two 42 ft rows of panels (12 each). I just happen to have a bunch of 4x8 ft insulation panels I bought at an auction. A 10% increase would be over 1000 watts. I might try one to see if I get any extra.

[@delicacydelight]

A practical way to enhance regular solar panels is to attach solar pool heating bladders to the back. This will keep the panels cooler, thereby increasing their efficiency and output, while simultaneously generating hot water.

[@delicacydelight]

Alternately run the heated water through a spare repurposed car truck radiator with a regular car temperature controlled electric thermo cooling fan to increase the panel efficiency and power output, suitable for extreme climates where this idea is practically usable due to the excess light.

[@carltontay]

If you would make the panels 3 or 4 feet higher off the ground, you would have much more light reflected to the the panels themselves because the shadows that the panels cast would be further back and you would have light reflected right under the panels themselves.

[@heatdeathforall]

You can also get white ground cover plastic / weed barrier. It’s used in commercial greenhouses. Might be slightly cheaper than gravel + normal weed barrier and have higher reflectivity. Edit: thinking about it the ideal customer would be somewhere arid where you need rainwater harvesting and have two shallow berms covered in white plastic to collect water and vertical bifacial panels running up the valley. The vertical position would help with air cooling and the diffuse light from the white plastic would keep it producing but not over heat it at midday giving an efficiency boost. Completely useless for me living in Ireland but fun to think about! Good idea for a lot of people in the Sahel in Africa though

[@Glen-r2j]

If you spray paint that bubble wrap white you will get even more light reflection because white reflects 99% of the light compared to silver. (white roofs on houses are way cooler temps than silver coated ones!). Your cyber friend, Me southern AZ.

[@Dogalot1]

Thanks for your sharing! I've investigated panels -- I've seen bifacial panels are better installed vertically - facing East/West. They found the reduction due to heat at the top of the day is rectified and the intensity from the East then West faces do great.

[@TKCL]

I've watched those tests myself with a few not having the same results. I might need to test myself.

[@Mark-gg6iy]

Just put black plastic underneath the gravel- no plants. White shells used on road shoulders in Louisiana would be good for reflective light. Anomet, Brampton, Ontario, Canada polished aluminum panels polished to mirror finish, great web-site, on-line sales, relatively inexpensive.

[@rossmackintosh7683]

I looked into bifacial panels and decided to not to go with them. It's my understanding that the cells will only collect so much light and its the same cells that collect from the front and the back therefore the cells on a bifacial panel if it collecting light from the back then have a shorter life and ultimately I wanted a longer life as I had more panels that I really needed. Good luck with your projects!

[@frankenstein3163]

Those type of panels are great for limited space as they naturally receive around 25% more energy for output. Great idea for reflection :)

[@BulletSpoung]

Your largest gain would be from raising the panels up ten feet off the ground so the sunlight can get underneath. With having them so low you're blocking the light.

[@johnshepherd7958]

How about making the actual solar panel slope adjustable with a pivot along the bottom edge. The objective being to get the low sun angle more square on to the panel face in Winter time etc. If the whole panel is more steeply inclined you can reflect light more square on from the rear side also. The gain in voltage would be really high.

[@TKCL]

Yes and my main shop solar array already does this. This small array is already producing what I need and then some. We are simply testing bifacial benefits due to reflectivity.

[@tbix1963]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, ideas and videos. Great video showing the properties of the bifacial panels. Would be interesting if you could video a line chart of your power output and overlay it to your videos. You could then see in the video the affect in sync to the video. You never know what nuances you might find. Might be worth trying to mount the panels in a vertical orientation. I’ve heard that is the latest craze, you make more power in the morning and evening, typically when needed by the power grid. Understandably not really relevant for you but the part I like is they should be less susceptible to damage from things like hail and could possibly be used in an urban setting as a replacement to a fence.

[@columbiabuzz]

A little contact cement and a couple rolls of Aluminum foil stuck to those sheets would make a heck of a mirror. Get some cheap white paint or white-wash and coat the rocks with a sprayer every couple years, you'll need to shield the panels during spraying.

[@PJ-uv9fr]

I love when you experiment and share your findings! Also when you stumble upon new knowledge to pass on. 👼🎅🎄Merry Christmas to you and Tiffany🎄🎅👼 (and the boys too!)

[@TKCL]

Thank you for watching, Merry Christmas!

[@TKCL]

I'm sure you could raise house temperature some by doing that. But I'd imagine paint fading and discoloration would happen.

[@stanants8566]

I was thinking if you rase the pannels you could git the reflection at a better angle increasing the amout ov light it bounces.

[@ErikGiesa]

Kelly, you could try using mirror paint on treated wood. Might be simpler to maintain over time. Curious to see how that would perform in terms of reflection boost.

[@TKCL]

I've never tried it, sounds interesting.

[@fredhand6019]

You could also set up one of those in front and reflect too reflect to the front of the panel as well

[@pedrold]

Excellent!!!😀 My English is very poor so I don't know if I'm going to suggest anything you said you are going to do. I'm talking about to use the same material to reflect the light and put it on the ground under the panels until the one you already have. So all the surface would reflect light to the bottom of the panels. I think that it would increase a little more the number of watts. Congratulations from Portugal.😀

[@TKCL]

Thank you for watching and the suggestion

[@wjlambert]

Have you considered mounting the panels vertically and putting a strip of concave reflective material on either side? Maybe mount the panels perpendicular to the path of the Sun?

[@seanquick9812]

vertical mounted panels with a bubble wrapped satellite dish (mega sized) underneath it. Science already figured out how to reflect in an optimal way. its a satellite dish shape. with the flexible bubble wrap i think you can make an easy approximation of one with just some vertical wood posts and run the bubble wrap between. I know that wasnt the purpose of this video... but you should totally try it.

[@jackcoats4146]

Something else that would help is to raise it up higher, it allows more 'area' to reflect onto.

[@putinscat1208]

I would recommend DIY types do some basic research on panel output voltage/wattage for series and parallel connections, and match with your charge converters, battery voltage, etc. I have been looking at this for about a week and have learned quite a bit. Also, just moving from 12V to 24V batteries can save $$ on wiring in your equipment and to your batteries.

[@lifequest7453]

ok now you have opened the box recent testing has proven that you can get voltage production from vertical panels. Panels directly aimed at the sun get hot, and heat drops voltage production. installing the panels vertical, reflects the heat off the panels and production goes up. so what if you mount your panels vertically, and have a reflective surface behind them for the dual voltage production???

[@ChrisBaileyMusic]

White stonechip under the panels will do a lot. I've seen studies from snowy areas showing that bi-facials perform really well with albedo, not just "mirrored" surfaces.

[@paperflight3104]

Can you shear a video