I just mounted my new Heliostat, to provide solar exposure for a north-facing herb garden on my kitchen windowsill. She’s from Italy, her name is Caia, by Solenica.
She’s easy to adjust but does not yet have a useful mount. I had to improvise one out of a Bike Friday handle bar made of anodized aircraft-grade alloy, deployed onto the peak of a 30” treated lumber pole. Readjusting her requires grasping her aiming bar by hand. (Not easy if mounted high). She’s brand new, but employs ABS and painted steel for structure and casing, (so long term, reliability, and weatherproofing us remain to be determined). Her mirror is considerably smaller than her US competitor.
Massachusetts-built Wikoda Sunflower III heliostat, has been casting light into my north facing living room through the skylight for about a year and a half now. It’s been performing generally like a champ. It’s mirror is thick, naked glass, and unfortunately has been plagued by some issues with the lamination from element exposure. It uses an iPhone app to communicate by Bluetooth, and therefore can be adjusted remotely, though the controls are a bit cumbersome and not perfectly intuitive.
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