How we created our own roof rack using the factory roof rack mounting pins. Build your own home for the cost of materials and save big, info at www.drystacked...
It doesn't even matter with this design, all it needs is two cross bars that miss any roof-lights at the spacing to hold each end of any panel, then just position the panel left-to-right and bolt it flush into the crossbars. I.e. by solving the mount points with a nice square piece of aluminium you could put the panels anywhere while other people are having to stick or bolt them to the roof itself, which isn't great when they fail!
This is Brilliant! Awesome job! This is what I've been trying to find. I didn't want to pay Hundreds of $$$ for a roof rack I couldn't customize. Awesome Job! Thumbs up!
Notice the front cross bar @ 3:15, I should have aligned the bottom with the side rail bottoms (instead of aligning the tops). This would have provided two advantages. It would keep the cross rail from hitting the curved roof and it would provide additional wind deflection for the solar panel leading edge. You should consider this change for your project.
The rack looks great! Well done. Your solution for the bracket is simple and brilliant (and low cost) too. I like that you painted the tubing white. The low profile rack looks nice for the van too. Thanks for sharing your design/video and your answers to questions below (which I noted too). Happy trails!
your bracket design is genius. SIMPLE GENIUS. I was looking for a long time for an alternative to the exessive expensive and high brackets available on the market. I will use your concept and then mount 80280 aliminium extrusion profiles on top to have a very flexible setup. Cant thank you enough..... Safe travels
Very interesting, thanks for posting! It's a common problem placing solar panels, this method can be used with shorter side bars and two cross bars to hold a solar panel on a busy van roof, some roofs only seem to have space for sticking or bolting on panels, but as panels fail that gets a bit awkward.
Great idea and design. A couple of quick questions.. Are the square 2" x 2" attachment resting on the roof to distribute the weight or are they just relying on the T nut for this. Would you recommend placing a thin rubber mat underneath them? What is the recommended width for the groove to achieve a good clamping? Many thanks for sharing 👍👍👍
By drilling a 1/4" hole then cutting the slot thru the hole, the clamped hole is now less than 1/4". This makes the 2x2 grip the pin which results in no movement. As far as a cushion, I didn't use one and I have never seen any rust develop around the pins with a couple years of use. So I suspect a rubber cushion is not needed at the base of the pin. Remember the 2x2 never touches the roof of the van, just the bottom of the pin.I ran my 2x2s through a table saw so the curf was about 1/8 inch which results in a very tight clamp. A quick tip, drill the holes and cut the curf before cutting the square tubing into 2" lengths. This gives you something to hold onto while cutting the curfs. Hope this helps.
This is the best DIY roof rack system I have seen. For the cross bars, how many did you install and were they welded together or did you use some other method.
Thanks for posting this video! I've been trying to find a sturdy design for my PM3500 and I really like what you've done here. Question... What did you coat the aluminum square tube with to match the van?
Thanks again for sharing your mounting solution. I just fabricated mine and they work great. You don't seem to be responding to questions but I will ask anyway. Have you noticed anything from the placement of the front crossbar at a 45 degree slant? I am thinking of the doing the same but with 1 1/2 square tubing so I can sidestep having to put a crown in it. Any info on this would be most appreciated. Anyone else need info on the making of the mount feel free to comment and I will respond. I definitely learned a lot by doing it myself and being safe about it.
Hi Mike, Did you make similar brackets to mount the roof rack to the promaster? I'm wondering the same thing as Scott, do you notice any rateling/horizontal-movement around the pin? Since the height of the pin is 3/16 and the thickness of aluminium is 1/8, leaves you with 1/16 of wiggle room, any issues there on speed bumps/dirt roads etc? I would love to hear more about your setup/how you did it what material you used. Did you use 1 1/2 square tubing?
After 4,000 miles of travel, haven't noticed any sag of the bend and never hear any vibration from the wind as I have with other roof racks with vertical cross-bars. I suspect that if you placed a rubber seal between cross-bar and roof, this would also decrease drag because air couldn't force under the cross-bar.
What you overlook is that the pin is clamped tightly and cant allow the rack to move up and down. The saw curf makes the resulting hole smaller when the bolt clamps the mount. Have looked for paint scratches on the pins but find none.
Simple elegant solution. Did you use 6061 or 6063 grade square pipe? Get it prepainted? Where to buy the black plugs in the front? Thanks for taking the time and being so thorough in your explanation.
Not sure which, probably 6061 if it is cheaper. Spray painted it not expecting it to last over aluminum. Plastic plugs from amazon, real cheap. Plus I wasn't worried about salt spray as in a boat application.
Many thanks for this video! Is it your opinion that 2" x 3" rectangular tubing would be tall enough to solve the clearance issue you encountered using 2" x 2" square tubing? I can't thank you enough for posting this.
I built the roof rack upside down and placed the top of the front cross bar even with the top of the side rails. That was a mistake, if you match the bottom of the cross bar with the bottom of the side rails, then the clearance is not an issue and the excess (due to 45-degrees) stands proud to the top of the side rails. This would also help to deflect the air above the mounted solar panel's front edge.
I placed the mount on a work bench upside down and drove a chisel thru the cut until is was spread wide enough. When installed the bolt will pull the cut almost closed as the mount clamps onto the pin. The mount can still twist until bolted to the roof rack.
Have any of you experienced any whistling or other wind noise while driving? Also, what have some of you paid for your set ups? Thanks Iwgraves for the inspiration!
Any issues with movement around the pins you clamped to. Seems like most setups clamp to flat top area of the pin. Thx for sharing your setup. looks good. Also how did you get your wires inside from the solar?
No movement on the pins due to the bolt clamping the tubing against the pins holes. I used a single thru hull stuffing tube on the roof where I wanted the wires inside, and dropped the wires down thru the wall. This tube is under the roof rack and not noticeable.
@@ForTheManDIY Sorry for being so ignorant. I've noticed the mounts at the end of video and I've assumed they're aftermarket, they look really well made.
I'm not sure, just measure between 2 opposing pins and add 1-inch. Of course they could be a little longer. That is my panel lengths. I only have 3x160w, 300w were not cheap 2 yrs ago.
1:42 - not sure if you know this but the pins can be rotated 90 degrees by using a pair of big pliers.
I wouldn't want to break the paint seal with rotation. My method didn't need pin rotation.
I love the simplicity of the hole and slot. So many over complicated methods to attach to those pins. Proper keep it simple engineering.
Pretty cool that the width spacing of the factory mounts were perfect for the solar panels
It doesn't even matter with this design, all it needs is two cross bars that miss any roof-lights at the spacing to hold each end of any panel, then just position the panel left-to-right and bolt it flush into the crossbars. I.e. by solving the mount points with a nice square piece of aluminium you could put the panels anywhere while other people are having to stick or bolt them to the roof itself, which isn't great when they fail!
This is Brilliant! Awesome job! This is what I've been trying to find. I didn't want to pay Hundreds of $$$ for a roof rack I couldn't customize. Awesome Job! Thumbs up!
Notice the front cross bar @ 3:15, I should have aligned the bottom with the side rail bottoms (instead of aligning the tops). This would have provided two advantages. It would keep the cross rail from hitting the curved roof and it would provide additional wind deflection for the solar panel leading edge. You should consider this change for your project.
The rack looks great! Well done. Your solution for the bracket is simple and brilliant (and low cost) too. I like that you painted the tubing white. The low profile rack looks nice for the van too. Thanks for sharing your design/video and your answers to questions below (which I noted too). Happy trails!
this is awesome! finally someone did what I've been thinking about, using aluminum square brackets. snd your mounting bracket idea is brilliant! 💡
Glad I could help!
your bracket design is genius. SIMPLE GENIUS. I was looking for a long time for an alternative to the exessive expensive and high brackets available on the market. I will use your concept and then mount 80280 aliminium extrusion profiles on top to have a very flexible setup.
Cant thank you enough..... Safe travels
Very interesting, thanks for posting! It's a common problem placing solar panels, this method can be used with shorter side bars and two cross bars to hold a solar panel on a busy van roof, some roofs only seem to have space for sticking or bolting on panels, but as panels fail that gets a bit awkward.
Nice idea. Nice job! Thank-you!
Thanks so much!
Looks good. 😎👍
Thanks
Great idea and design. A couple of quick questions..
Are the square 2" x 2" attachment resting on the roof to distribute the weight or are they just relying on the T nut for this.
Would you recommend placing a thin rubber mat underneath them?
What is the recommended width for the groove to achieve a good clamping?
Many thanks for sharing 👍👍👍
By drilling a 1/4" hole then cutting the slot thru the hole, the clamped hole is now less than 1/4". This makes the 2x2 grip the pin which results in no movement. As far as a cushion, I didn't use one and I have never seen any rust develop around the pins with a couple years of use. So I suspect a rubber cushion is not needed at the base of the pin. Remember the 2x2 never touches the roof of the van, just the bottom of the pin.I ran my 2x2s through a table saw so the curf was about 1/8 inch which results in a very tight clamp. A quick tip, drill the holes and cut the curf before cutting the square tubing into 2" lengths. This gives you something to hold onto while cutting the curfs. Hope this helps.
This is the best DIY roof rack system I have seen. For the cross bars, how many did you install and were they welded together or did you use some other method.
Two cross bars, one at each end. The front crossbar was recessed to reduce windage.
good job
Thanks for posting this video! I've been trying to find a sturdy design for my PM3500 and I really like what you've done here. Question... What did you coat the aluminum square tube with to match the van?
I painted them with white spray paint. Easy to scratch without aircraft primer underneath. But the scratches aren't noticeable from the ground.
May I ask where you found the powder-coated or anodized white aluminum?
Thanks again for sharing your mounting solution. I just fabricated mine and they work great. You don't seem to be responding to questions but I will ask anyway. Have you noticed anything from the placement of the front crossbar at a 45 degree slant? I am thinking of the doing the same but with 1 1/2 square tubing so I can sidestep having to put a crown in it. Any info on this would be most appreciated. Anyone else need info on the making of the mount feel free to comment and I will respond. I definitely learned a lot by doing it myself and being safe about it.
Hi Mike, Did you make similar brackets to mount the roof rack to the promaster? I'm wondering the same thing as Scott, do you notice any rateling/horizontal-movement around the pin? Since the height of the pin is 3/16 and the thickness of aluminium is 1/8, leaves you with 1/16 of wiggle room, any issues there on speed bumps/dirt roads etc? I would love to hear more about your setup/how you did it what material you used. Did you use 1 1/2 square tubing?
After 4,000 miles of travel, haven't noticed any sag of the bend and never hear any vibration from the wind as I have with other roof racks with vertical cross-bars. I suspect that if you placed a rubber seal between cross-bar and roof, this would also decrease drag because air couldn't force under the cross-bar.
What you overlook is that the pin is clamped tightly and cant allow the rack to move up and down. The saw curf makes the resulting hole smaller when the bolt clamps the mount. Have looked for paint scratches on the pins but find none.
Super simple to build bracket, thankyou! Have you had any problems with water leakage through the seams in your Promaster roof?
I know not of what you speak. My roof is all factory, with no new seams except for ceiling vents which have no leaks.
Beautiful work. Where did you buy the aluminum square tubing? Thanks
Simple elegant solution. Did you use 6061 or 6063 grade square pipe? Get it prepainted? Where to buy the black plugs in the front? Thanks for taking the time and being so thorough in your explanation.
Did you get an answer on which grade of tubing was used?
@@terryjones12 no I didn't. Probably 6061
Not sure which, probably 6061 if it is cheaper. Spray painted it not expecting it to last over aluminum. Plastic plugs from amazon, real cheap. Plus I wasn't worried about salt spray as in a boat application.
Hi, thanks for this. What size bolts did you use and do you have any problems with expansion?
Many thanks for this video! Is it your opinion that 2" x 3" rectangular tubing would be tall enough to solve the clearance issue you encountered using 2" x 2" square tubing? I can't thank you enough for posting this.
I built the roof rack upside down and placed the top of the front cross bar even with the top of the side rails. That was a mistake, if you match the bottom of the cross bar with the bottom of the side rails, then the clearance is not an issue and the excess (due to 45-degrees) stands proud to the top of the side rails. This would also help to deflect the air above the mounted solar panel's front edge.
@Iwgraves how did you bend the 2 inch mounts open enough to slide it over the pins? I'm currently trying to do this but it bends right back.
I placed the mount on a work bench upside down and drove a chisel thru the cut until is was spread wide enough. When installed the bolt will pull the cut almost closed as the mount clamps onto the pin. The mount can still twist until bolted to the roof rack.
Have any of you experienced any whistling or other wind noise while driving? Also, what have some of you paid for your set ups? Thanks Iwgraves for the inspiration!
None
Any issues with movement around the pins you clamped to. Seems like most setups clamp to flat top area of the pin. Thx for sharing your setup. looks good. Also how did you get your wires inside from the solar?
No movement on the pins due to the bolt clamping the tubing against the pins holes. I used a single thru hull stuffing tube on the roof where I wanted the wires inside, and dropped the wires down thru the wall. This tube is under the roof rack and not noticeable.
Now that some time has passed. Have the mounts ever become loose? thanks
No changes and no looseness. Remember that the horizontal bolt clamps the bracket to the roof pin.
Nice setup. Where did you buy the mounts for mounting pins?
Not sure of your question. Video explains the mounts, the pins were factory installed.
@@ForTheManDIY Sorry for being so ignorant. I've noticed the mounts at the end of video and I've assumed they're aftermarket, they look really well made.
Wat size width ways are solar panels looks a tight fit? What wattage are they im guessing 320w?
I'm not sure, just measure between 2 opposing pins and add 1-inch. Of course they could be a little longer. That is my panel lengths. I only have 3x160w, 300w were not cheap 2 yrs ago.
@@ForTheManDIY cheers
$200 for 8 is not expensive