Ground Mounting

Ground screws and complete kitset frames for putting a solar array on the ground instead of on a roof.

Everything here is structural steel made to AS/NZS 1170.2, the wind loading standard. A ground mounted array is a sail standing in the open with nothing sheltering it, so the frame and what holds it to earth is the whole job. The 14 panel frame is rated for wind zones up to 55 m/s out of the box and the 6 and 12 panel frames to 50 m/s, with no extra bracing.

The three kitsets take large panels in portrait. The 6 panel frame is two rows of three, up to 3000W, and needs 3.2 m by 2.8 m of ground. The 12 panel frame is two rows of six, up to 6000W, and needs 6.6 m by 2.8 m. The 14 panel frame is two rows of seven at 40 degrees, up to 9500W, double braced, and needs 8.2 m by 3.5 m. Measure the ground before you order, because those figures are the frame, not the working space around it.

The frame fixes down one of two ways, ground screws or dynabolts into concrete. The 6 panel frame takes 4x 1.6 m ground screws or 8 dynabolts, the 12 panel takes 6x 1.6 m ground screws or 12 dynabolts, and the 14 panel takes 8 ground screws, 1.6 m in firm ground or 2.2 m in soft, or 16 dynabolts. We can supply either separately.

Ground screws are the reason you do not need concrete. They go in within minutes rather than setting for hours, and they come out again if you ever want to move the array. They come in 0.8 m, 1.6 m and 2.2 m, all 76 mm across except the 0.8 m which is 60 mm, and there is a 400 mm extension for adding height after the screw is already in. Every ground screw comes with the loan of the manual installation tool, so you put them in yourself with no machinery on site. The 865 mm and 1400 mm beam screws are the same idea for beams, bearers and decks.

The panels are in Solar Panels, and if the array is going on a roof instead then the rails, clamps and legs are in the Roof Mounting category. Cable, the earth kit and the crimping gear are in Solar Cabling. The MC4 connectors, the string fuses and the DC isolator are in Solar Connectors.

If you are not sure the ground you have will take the array you want, tell us the panels and we will tell you what fits.

Installing for a client? See our ground-mount racking for solar installers page for the consent exemption, the frames and trade supply.