Hail of a day (glass)

[longwolf]

The other day we had a sudden and severe hail storm. They ranged from marble to fist sized.
For a while it was coming down as fast as a blizzard, a very solid blizzard. The ground was completely covered.

My home made solar panel is mounted to a sheet of plywood that is attached to the ladder rack of my van. Of course the panel usually lays flat. I had also just added a small 24 x 18 inch solar oil heating panel that I was doing some tests with.

Here's the carnage:

1. The first pic is the new solar heater before mounting.

2. The hail was coming from behind me and falling at about the same angle as the windshield. Didn't help.

3. I really got worried when I saw what happened to the 5/8s plywood.

4. The acrylic on the heater. In fact the tubing and the wood frame got smashed up too.

5. And the solar panel. I believe it's quarter inch. And I'm very glad I went with the tempered!
(the white flecks are paint from the plywood)

Anyone still want to consider acrylic for their panels?

[Sunking]

You should have been in Dallas last week. Softball sized hail. It is a blessing to auto repair, roofers, and solar installers. They will have more work then they know what to do with for the next 2 years. Heck they still have not caught up from the last Hail storm 3 years ago. Storms and natural disasters are money making machines.

[longwolf]

You should have been in Dallas last week. Softball sized hail. ........

You found me, but the largest I saw where fist sized. This place looked like a war zone. The parking lots are still full of broken glass. I got off lighter than many, I can still see through the windshield. I know one guy who's windshield, back window and sunroof were knocked completely out, and the sheet metal isn't much better. His insurance thinking of totaling his two y.o. car.

So are you in Big D too?

[Sunking]

So are you in Big D too?

Kind of. I live just north of Frisco off of 289 near Prosper. So yeah I live in the DFW metro area, just not in Dallas physically.