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Solar installed on a barn roof?
Looking to have some panels installed, on the roof of a steel portal framed barn, believe using K2 fixings, for a domestic 3 phase off grid system. They estimate it’ll be a 13% load increase across the roof. My preferred installer is requesting we have a structural survey done on the barn first, I’ve not heard of them being done on house roofs ect before but could well be wrong, is this something people would expect to need? I understand it’s to cover them if it were to collapse ect but is that not my responsibility? Just thought I’d question it as the survey isn’t going to be cheap.
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17 Replies
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We install onto barns regularly, it is common practice to do a structural survey, we have in-house expertise for that though. The design should aim to place the loading on the steel portals not the wooden purlins.
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They are done on domestic installs too
However domestic roofs are generally quite similar to eachother
It would be the span of them beams that could potentially throw issues as they span quite far
Also with the weight of panels that you would be able to fit on the roof it is always best to check these things
That being said
As an installer they should be able to do the calculations themselves as it doesn’t take alot
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I have had 4 quotes for my house but only the last mentioned l would need a structural survey.
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Structural surveys should be done on every property! Residential is just much simpler in most cases and software takes care of the vast majority of it!
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it’s wise….the corrugated steel sheets are thin and designed for basic wind and snow loads….adding panels significantly increases the loads….. fixing to often 0.6mm thick steel is also of concern for fixings pull out etc…..get it checked.
They will run a wind load calc for your specifics and spanability of sheets/ purlins etc
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Try these guys. We use them for
installation https://www.bmgsurveysltd.com/
bmgsurveysltd.com
Structural Roof Reports Specialised professional engineering & survey support services to renewable energy installers and designers across the UK and Ireland. Contact us Renewables Sector Consulting Comprehensive knowledge and attention to detail in the renewables sector, and in particular the … Continue reading
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Slightly different scenario Joe but a couple of friends are in the process of selling property’s and have been forced to provide a report/survey on the roof which has the solar panels fitted. Which was not done some years ago when the system was fitted.
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I’d say if you happoly
Take
On the responsibility of the roof being adequate rather than pay for the survey , put it in writing and your both happy and
Covered ?
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Maybe the supplier of the building can advise, I’m sure they must know what it can take, with regard to snow build up.
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Metasole plates would be ideal, the panels sit ~10mm from the roof, this reduces wind loading and the need for rails if the tin is thick enough. The panel weight is negligible and perhaps if you know the company who done the steel frame they can comment on the loading allowances.
Rail systems do let you bridge skylights where as you can’t fix the metasole plates into skylight panels.
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The issue isn’t just should it be a problem when installed – the installers don’t want it to collapse when they’re installing it, as it puts them at risk.
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That roof does look pretty “light” to me…I’d be inclined to some intermediate purlins in
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Get some quotes from other suppliers for comparison – ideally ones that are very familiar with barn installations.
That roof looks pretty standard to me. My own and 2 friend’s installations were on very similar roofs.
Renusol MS+ mounts or the similar ones from Clenergy are great on trapezoidal steel roofs.
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We are looking at putting panels on a barn roof that is FAR more substantial than that, and the installed wants a structural survey done (arse covering exercise I suspect). That does look like a light roof to be fair.
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Just order the kit yourself from tradesparky and pay a roofer to install and a sparky to connect them up. You’ll save about 50% on total costs I reckon.
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Shouldn’t cost that much? What about simply indemnifying them against the structure
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Yeah, that’s pretty standard for a barn setup. Steel portal frames vary a lot, so installers usually want a structural survey to confirm load and wind forces—especially for larger/off-grid systems. It’s not always legally required, but most reputable installers and insurers expect it to avoid risk or damage . Barns and non-standard roofs are exactly the cases where a survey is recommended anyway . So while it feels like extra cost, it’s a sensible step rather than overkill.
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