Complete Guide for Your DIY Solar Project

1. Safety Installation

2. Plan Your System with Chalk

   A. Mark Fire Lanes and Array Corners

   B. Plan for Attachments

3. Install Anchors

   A. Tools Needed

   B. How to Find Studs and Make Sure Your Roof Doesn't Leak!

   C. Install Flashings

4. Install Railing

   A. Cutting Rails to the proper lengths

   B. Connect Two Rails Together

   C. Fasten Rails to Attachment Points

6. Install Soladeck

7. Connect and Run Wiring

STEP 1

Install Anchors

This Steps Saves You $1,500-$3,0000

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Tools for Step 1: your solar plans, rubber mallet, drill, 1/8” drill bit, 1⁄4” drill bit, chalk, chalk line, Ironridge Flashfoot2/lag bolt/Flashfoot2 cap, pry bar, sealant, caulking gun, Bosch D-Tect 150

A. Before You Get On The Roof:

Understand the location of your solar panels based off your site plans, gather the needed materials into your tool belt, and decide which method you will use from Table 1A to find rafters on the roof. Project Solar highly recommends you borrow a Bosch D-Tect 150. This will make finding rafters easier, and your project will go faster. Contact us to make a deposit and we will mail your one of our Bosch D-Tect 150’s.

Table 1A - 4 Ways to Find Rafters

Electronic Stud Finder

Visual Location

Echo Location

Exploratory Drilling

STEP 1

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Project Solar Pro Tip:

If you miss a stud, push a hooked-coat hanger through the hole to feel for the rafter. Don’t stress about extra holes in your roof; fill them with sealant. If you have a hole not covered by your flashfoot, alluminum waterproof repair tape from your local hardware store is an easy fix.

B. Chalk Out Your First Array

-View your plans to understand the position of your array(s), and mark the corners of your array with chalk. Make sure you leave enough room for fire lanes according to local code, and note that rails should extend a maximum of 16” past the final anchor in a row.
-Table 1B details where panels will attach to the rail. Measure the distance from the bottom of your panel to the rail, and mark the shingle line where your anchors will penetrate the roof. Snap lines to represent where each rail will be located.
-Refer to Table 1A to identifiy a method for locating rafters within your array. Locate rafters and snap chalk lines to show where each rafter is located.
-The black dots on the anchors page of your plans (shown in orange in Figure 1B) show how anchors need to be staggered to maximize structural strength. Following your plans, mark the locations of each anchor with chalk.

Table 1B

STEP 1

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Figure 1B

STEP 1 5

C. Drill Holes Into Rafters

Use the 1⁄4” drill bit to pre-drill anchor holes in their marked locations. Draw a line running horizontal and vertical with your anchor hole so you can easily line up the centering tick marks on your flashing with your lines (Figure 1C).

Figure 1C

D. Install The Anchors

Use the pry bar to gently lift shingles and pry up nails so your flashing is at least 3⁄4” above the edge of the 3rd row of shingles and the bottom of the flashing is above the edge of the 1st row
of shingles as seen in Figure 1D.1. Fill the pre-drilled hole with sealant and apply sealant to the bottom of the flashing as shown in Figure 1D.2. Slide the anchor under your shingles until the tick marks line up with your chalk lines, drill the lag bolt into the hole, and twist on the anchor cap until it “clicks.”

Figure 1D.1 Figure 1D.2

STEP 1 6

You’re Done With Step One!

STEP 2

Fasten Racking

This Step Saves You $1,000-$2,000

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Tools for Step 2: Your Plans, Iron Ridge Racking, Square Bolts, Sawzall or handsaw, drill, torque wrench

A. Before You Get On The Roof:

Do not start cutting until you’ve planned out all your racking; you have only been given enough for your system. Using Table 2A, see how long the rail will be for each row. Depending on your preference, you can cut the rail on the ground, or after they are secured on the roof. If you need to combine rails, slide 6” of the bonded splice into one rail and drill 2 self-drilling screws (Figure 2A.1) at 20 in-lbs., 1” apart, to secure the bonded splice in place (Figure 2A.2). Do the same with the other rail you’d like to connect.

Table 2A Figure 2A.1

Figure 2A.2

STEP 2

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B. Install Racks

Clip into your safety harness and bring the needed material onto the roof. Slide mounting screws (Figure 2B) into the racks and place screws on the anchors. Railing can be on either side of your anchor based on aesthetic choice. Tighten bolts to 250 in-lbs at the appropriate height according to your plans.

Figure 2B

C. Cut To Length

If you did not cut the rails on the ground, make sure they are well secured to the anchors, measure the rails, mark them with pencil, and cut them to length. Rails should extend an equal amount past the final anchor on either side of a row. Remember rails should not extend 16” past the final anchor.

You’re Done With Step Two!

STEP 2 9

STEP 3

Roof & Attic Wiring

This Step Saves You $3,000-$6,000

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Tools for Step 3: Soladeck, cord grips, terminals, mini flathead screwdriver, drill, 1 1/8” hole saw, 1/4” drill bit, white/green/black THWN, flex pipe, copper wire, grounding lug, wire cutters/wire strippers, chalk, sealant, caulking gun, Romex

Important notes on Wiring:

Each array will have its own Soladeck where the trunk cable connects to the Romex (orange/yellow wire). Romex will run through your attic, or through EMT on your roof, to converge in the final Soladeck before forming the “homerun,” the group of wires from your last Soladeck to your main panel. The homerun is made up of THWN wires: one pair of black/white wires for every string of panels, and one ground (green) wire for your whole system.

3/4” Knockout 1” Knockout

A. Before You Get On The Roof:

Prepare your Soladeck by removing the correct knockouts inside the Soladeck (3/4”for Romex & 1” for homerun). Then use the 1/4” drill bit
to drill a hole into the bottom or side where the ground wire from the panels will enter

the Soladeck. Next, use the 1 1/8” hole saw to drill a hole into the bottom or side where the trunk cable will enter the Soladeck. Secure the provided cord grip into the 1 1/8” hole. Finally, clip one positive and one negative terminal into the DIN rail for each string of panels that will pass through this Soladeck (see Figure 3A).

Figure 3A - Prepare Soladeck

Terminals DIN Rail Ground Bar

3/4” Cord Grip for trunk cable

1/4” Hole for grounding wire

STEP 3 11

B. Install Soladeck

-Your Soladeck will be under or next to the last panel where your trunk cable ends. Most people place Soladecks under the array for aesthetics, though it makes potential maintenance more difficult. Once you’ve determined your location, use the lid to trace the Soladeck on the shingles. Cut the shingles and remove any nails that will interfere with the Soladeck flashing. Exposed wood or weatherproofing material should now be visible as seen in Figure 3B.1

-Remove the cord grips from the knockouts, and slide the Soladeck into position. Use chalk to mark the holes where you will drill through the roof. Remove the Soladeck and drill an oversized hole so the cord grip can fit through the roof when it is fastened to the Soladeck. Use sealant to waterproof the Soladeck, then slide it into place as seen in Figure 3B.2. Fasten the Soladeck into place with the provided screws and use sealant to glue the shingles on top of the Soladeck flashing.

Figure 3B.1 Figure 3B.2

C. Secure Romex in Attic and Tie in Electrical

(If you only have 1 string, skip to 3D)

If you have multiple strings, you will need to connect them using the Romex provided. After fastening the 1⁄2” cord grip into the Soladeck, feed the Romex into the Soladeck through the cord grip, and have the person on the roof use a knife to carefully score, unsheath, and strip the white (positive) and black (negative) wires. Place your white (+) wire into the top of the positive terminal, and use your mini screw druver to tighten the wire down with the terminal screw, and then do the same with your black (-) wire in the negative terminal. As seen in Figure 3C, exposed wire should not be potruding from the terminal. Next, the person in the attic should secure the wire using 1” electrical staples spaced apart according to code in your area. CAUTION: Do not hammer

the staples so tight that they pinch the Romex. Doing so can damage the wire and cause malfunctions. Run the Romex to your final Soladeck and feed it through the 1/2” cord grip. This time, the person on the roof will tie the positive and negative lines into the bottom of their respective positive and negative terminals as seen in Figure 3C. Once finished, close the lid to the Soladeck.

STEP 3 12

Figure 3C

String 2 - Incoming from attic Romex 10 gauge (check with plans)

Negative: Black Positive: White

End of trunk cable from String1

THWN system ground Ground from String 2 Ground from String 1

STEP 3 13

D. Feed THWN through flexible conduit and secure in Attic for Home Run

Your homerun, the electrical run from your final Soladeck to your main panel, will need one pair of white and black THWN wires per string of panels, and one green wire of THWN for grounding your entire system. All wires should match the gauge of the wire specified in your plans. Measure the THWN so it can extend 24 inches through the cord grip in your final Soladeck, extend through your attic, and exit the attic to extend 10 feet past the bottom of your main panel. Plan where the THWN will pass from your attic to the outside, and then cut the THWN. After cutting all THWN strands to the correct size, tape the ends and mark each pair with Sharpie® using I, II, III etc. so you can identify which pairs belong together from both ends. Next, cut the flexible conduit the appropriate length to run from your final Soladeck to where the THWN will exit the attic, and feed the THWN through your conduit. If your conduit is too long, use fish tape to pull it through, or follow our Project Solar Pro Tip to avoid buying fish tape.

Pull the THWN through the conduit, being careful not to damage the THWN on the ends of your metal conduit. Once all the strands of THWN are in the flexible conduit, bring it into your attic and feed the excess 24 inches of wire through the cord grip into your final Soladeck and tighten the cord grip so the wires cannot fall back down into the attic. Secure the conduit to the studs with single-hole fasteners, and make sure to follow city minimums with how far apart each fastener is placed. Finally, neatly coil the excess THWN as close as you can to the point where the THWN will penetrate from the attic to the exterior.

Project Solar Pro Tip

If you don’t have fish tape, tie your THWN together with string, and use a vacuum
to suck the string through the conduit so you can pull the THWN through. Make sure to seal the vacuum to the end of your flex conduit with tape, or use your hand, so the vacuum can only suck air through the conduit, while string is being fed through the other side.

E. Connect All Wires in Final Soladeck.

-Note that THWN is harder to strip than Romex. First score and remove the plastic from the THWN and then gently score and remove the rubber conduit once the plastic is removed. Be careful not to knick the copper wire! Doing so will decrease its load capacity and affect system efficiency! Practice on excess wire until you feel comfortable stripping the wire that will be used for your project. If you knick a wire that is being used in your system you will have to purchase more wire from your local hardware store and redo Step 3D.

-On the roof, open the final Soladeck, strip the THWN grounding wire, and connect it to your grounding bar. Next, use the roman numeral tick marks to make sure you are pairing the correct pairs of positive and negative wires together. Each pair will correspond with a string of panels. Carefully score the THWN and unsheath the wire, then tie negative “I” to the negative terminal corresponding to your first string, and positive “I” to the positive terminal corresponding with your first string. Negative “II” and positive “II” will follow the same pattern for your second string, and so on until all strings are connected to THWN. Check Figure 3C to ensure you have properly wired your final Soladeck.

You’re Done With Step Three!

STEP 3 14

STEP 4

Install Microinverters, Panels, and Finish Wiring

This Step Saves You $3,000-$6,000

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Tools for Step 4: Jinko Panels, Ironridge CAMO, Iron Ridge UFO Clamp, Enphase Microinverter, T Screws, trunk cable, terminator cap, drill, torque wrench, zip ties, wire cutters/wire strippers

A. Before You Get On The Roof:

-Download the “Enphase Enlighten” app so you can track your system’s productivity.
-Count how many micro inverters will be in your string of panels, and cut the trunk cable so there are enough plugs for micro inverters. CAUTION: Make sure your final cable before the Soladeck is long enough to feed into the Soladeck and has plenty of extra wire so it can be wired as shown in Figure 3C (pg. 13).

B. Fasten End Cap

The end of the trunk cable which will not go into Soladeck gets capped off with the provided terminator cap. To install the terminator cap, strip 1/2” off the end of the red and black wires, slide on the hex nut and then insert the two wires into the terminator body. Make sure the wires are separated inside the terminator body as seen in Figure 4B. Tighten the hex nut while holding the terminator body stationary so only the hex nut is spinning.

For Video see: https://youtu.be/Fd6BKiMn-20?t=53

Figure 4B

C. Map Out Enphase Micro Inverters

Use the trunk cable to map out how far apart each micro inverter will be. Make sure micro inverters can also plug into their respective solar panels. If you need to, you can place more than one microinverter under a panel to reach the trunk cable to the next row of microinverters. Microinverters can be put on the high or low rail to allow the trunk cable to reach; just make sure they can be covered by the panels, and that panel edges will not lay directly onto microinverters.

STEP 4 16

D. Secure Ground Wire

Attach the grounding lugs according to at least one of the two rails on each row of panels, unless otherwise specified by code, and tighten the screw to 80 in-lbs (Figure 4D.1).

According to your plans, secure the correct gauge ground (copper) wire into the grounding lug at 20 in-lbs (Figure 4D.2).

Feed the ground wire into the hole on your Soladeck and fasten it to the ground bar inside the Soladeck as seen in Figure 3C (pg 12).

Figure 4D.1 Figure 4D.2

E. Install Microinverters

Using the T screws (Figure 4E), secure each microinverter at (80 in-lbs)
into their appropriate planned locations, and plug in the trunk cable to
the microinverters. Zip tie the trunk capable to the rails to keep the trunk cable OFF the roof. Any wires touching the roof will result in a failure during inspection. Open your Enphase Enlighten app and follow the steps to map out your system by scanning the barcode of each microinverter in the proper order.

Figure 4F.1

Figure 4E

STEP 4 17

F. Install Panels

We recommend using two people to carry panels onto your roof. Figure 4F.1 shows the proper way for a person to carry a panel while on a ladder. If there are harsh weather conditions, wait to carry the panels onto the roof. Once on the roof, stand up the solar panel on the edge of the rail that is furthest from your Soladeck. Plug the panel wires into its corresponding microinverter, and lay the panel down into its position. Slide the CAMO onto the rail, but do not tighten. Ensure the panel is seated correctly on the rail based on (Table 1B), that you have left space for fire lanes according to plans, and that panels are straight before installing. To ensure panels are straight, use the top rail as a point of reference. Measure the distance between the top rail and the top of the panel on the left side of the panel, and slide the panel up or down on the opposite side until it measures the same distance between the top of the rail and the top of the panel. Secure the CAMO to lock the panel into place (Figure 4F.2).

Figure 4F.2

STEP 4 18

Glass panel for visual example

Follow the same process for the next panel, but use the mid clamp (Figure 4F.3) in between the first and second panel and secure the mid clamp to 80 in-lbs. DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN. Doing so will break the glass on your solar panels. Next use zip ties to fasten the cables so they are not touching the roof. If cables are touching the roof, they can receive more weather damage and ruin your system. You will not pass inspection if cables are touching the roof. The panels have holes in the edges that make for good zip tie spots, as well as the micro inverters, grounding cables, and rails.

Figure 4F.3

G. Complete Wiring of Soladeck

Before laying your last panel, cut the trunk cable and splice the wires. Feed the trunk cable through the cord grip, making sure at least 1” of sheathing enters the Soladeck. Connect the positive side into the positive terminal, and the negative side into the negative terminal as shown in Figure 3C (pg 12). Repeat this process for each string of panels.

You’re Done With Step Four!

STEP 4 19

YOU’RE DONE

Your project has saved you $10,000 to $20,000 in installation costs

CONGRATULATIONS! You finished your Solar Project. Please text us (888-888-8888) or email us (schedule@projectsolar.io) to schedule an electrician to complete your final hookup at no extra charge. After the electrician finishes the work, please schedule the final inspection(s). DO NOT turn on your solar system until you have been authorized by the correct personnel to do so. Once you pass final inspection(s) your city and/or electrical company will authorize you to turn your solar power on!