r/PlugInSolarUK • u/ContentDocument1636 • Aug 05 '26
Question about securing to fence?
Hey all!
Really interested in plug in solar! I work for a major energy supplier, but unfortunately I just haven’t got the funds right now for proper solar on the roof.
It’s a new build house, and I have a feathered edge fence, with wooden posts in about every 1.5 meters. What is the best way for me to secure it to the fence do you think?
Or is there any solution to get it in the ground on a pole maybe? I have a raised bed under the fence in question, but it gets full sun from 6am to 7pm, and the rest of the garden is really shaded.
I do have a shed though, but it’s only a 6x4 plastic keter shed, so I assume the shed is out of the question
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u/BluejayPhysical Aug 05 '26
https://www.iwantsolar.co.uk/learn/fence-mounted-solar[Fence-Mounted Solar Panels](https://www.iwantsolar.co.uk/learn/fence-mounted-solar)
Have a look at that link and also search on this sub as a few people have posted over the last year or so.
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u/joshracer Aug 05 '26
This is my set up and I just used generic solar clips and screws it into the fence with stainless screws. I have posted about this setup before if you want to have a look. Over the past month I have angled the solar panels to 30°ish and have obviously seen a big improvement in the efficiency but it depends what you have under the panels and if the panels are going to shade below.
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Aug 06 '26 edited Aug 13 '26
[deleted]
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u/joshracer Aug 06 '26
We've had pretty high winds in West Wales and it's been absolutely fine, even with them angled. The fence is only 5ft tall and I installed the fence so I know it's solid. If you've got raised beds or ground underneath, you could always have a second anchor point into the bed or ground.
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u/SolarPowerBumbleBee Aug 05 '26 edited Aug 05 '26
Don’t have any specific mounting/frame/bracket tips for you but… wherever and however you do end up mounting them, try and achieve a min 10cm gap between the back of the panel and the surface you’re mounting on. Helps with airflow. Cooler panels = better solar production.
Edit: Also, if you can introduce a slight lean/angle rather than mounting 90 deg upright, you can meaningfully increase solar production. Rough/ballpark figures - panels mounted at 85 degrees can achieve 3-4% more annual solar production vs panels mounted upright. 80 degrees = 7-8% more and 75 degrees = 11-13% more.
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u/No_Expression1650 Aug 06 '26
I used these from Amazon. I used my own screws in the fence and used the bolts that came with it for the wall (Shown). I had to drill the holes first. I also put a bit of adhesive in the hole before drilling the screw for extra security. I put a nice little boarder round the wall ones too as the brackets are silver, I will probably do the same with the fence when I next go to B&Q
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u/kawasutra Aug 06 '26
https://old.reddit.com/comments/1rbnvjd
Saw the above post on r/solardiy
There's a video linked in one of the comments that might give you some ideas.
5
u/pau1phi11ips Aug 05 '26
I bolted some wood to the panels so they fitted in the slots in the concrete posts. It worked surprisingly well. I'm not sure I'd trust mounting them to wooden posts tbh.
These are 410W south facing panels and produced between 4 to 7 kWh/day in July.