Shading sun path viewer

[Ramjam]

Hi,

I'm looking for a sun path shading viewer thingy. I saw one a while ago which had a digital camera mount which seemed like a good idea but I can't find it again. If you've got such a thing do you think it's good?

 

[pembrokeshire]

Hi, the PV SOl guys have one , I think its about £80
cheers

 

[edexlab]

Solar pathfinders good ,easy to use and accurate and not too expensive

 

[Ramjam]

Do you guys use these devices?

 

[edexlab]

I've used it a few times mainly on jobs which had shading issues and the customer was insisting on a poor location so really it was used to deter them from that and to show them a better alternative
I can see some installers not liking these devices as it can sometimes have the opposite result and the customer decides its not that viable
on the other hand it can show that you are a responsible installer who won't fit it just for their own gains

 

[Noddy67]

how do they work?

 

[edexlab]

the model I've used has a perspex dome under which you place a sun path chart specific to latitude you level it align to compass bearings and when you view it you get a fish eye view showing the horizon and any objects causing shade , you then trace arond the shaded areas and add the numbers together this gives you a percentage of shading throughout the year, its looks hard but is very simple ,you can also get a software program to present the findings ,I'm not too fussed about this and probably won't get it but the device works well and its easy to show the customer how it works
there is a video on it on you tube.

 

[Noddy67]

Thanks (especially the youtube bit). I can't imagine it but I guess I will as soon as i see it.

thanks

 

[HotSpot]

I looked at the video and it certainly seems to look good. The problem I can't work out is how you'd use it at roof height to get the actual shading, say 20feet up!!??? Or do you do it at ground level and just ignore the possible difference?

 

[Former Sponsor TM]

Do you have a link to the video please?

 

[HotSpot]

Try this for starters...

YouTube - The Solar Pathfinder - Introduction

 

[edexlab]

Made a small platform for it and did it from eaves height with a roof ladder , and the other had a flat roof dormer i sat on, but yes it is a drawback , do it from ground level if obstructions are further away ,but if they are fairly close doing at ground level makes it appear worse than it is
but any device is difficult to use at eaves height,especially off a ladder except for the sun eye #1500 quid which you would do from a roof ladder

 

[GenFlux Jim]

If you have an iphone take a look at the 'sunseeker' app. it has a flat compass that shows the rise and set points.
It also has a real time viewer that is superimposed on the camera screen to show you the sun path at both solstices and the day that you are viewing on. Shadow points are highlighted.
Very cheap at about £4 (plus the price of an Iphone contract)
Not only is it a very easy to use and instant solution, it looks great-what a gadget.

 

[Worcester]

(IAEFGI) aka "If All Else Fails Google It!"

Solar Pathfinder - Videos

Nifty little tool .

 

[Noddy67]

downloaded the iphone version - looks very comprehensive and the date/sunset times is valuable in itself. But not sure how to use either the flat or 3D compass - it all seems backwards (or my iphone is completely inaccurate). But worth persevering with since it only cost £2!

 

[GenFlux Jim]

Yeah, it seems like its not 100% spot on with the compass, but I reckon with that pinch of salt its going to be a very useful tool, especially in the initial survey & customer chat. One thing that is backwards is the azimuth, it shows south as 180 degrees.

 

[Noddy67]

Is it as simple as this? You keep the elevation at 0 degrees, point south, and you can see where the sun rises and sets? tilt it to the angle of the roof and again you can see the same but from the perspective of the prospective tiles?

is that about right? It's difficult to tell as the their sun isn't where the real sun is? (which I appreciate would be too difficult to line up 100%).

Also just playing with my iphone compass and my wife's and it's not right... sounds like a long painful call to Vodafone is required.

 

[GenFlux Jim]

What it shows you is the path of the sun at midsummer-red line, midwinter-blue line, and the day you're looking at-yellow line. All from the the perspective of you exact location, so if you look from the ground and then from the roof directly above, you will see the same paths, but the shadowcast will be different.

keep playing, its been really useful to show a great graphic to perspective clients. I've only had it a week or so, lovin it.