Solar Panels No South Facing Roof

But what if you don t have a suitable south facing roof.

Solar panels no south facing roof.

The most common rule of thumb is that you simply can t do that. Do you have to have a south facing roof to have solar panels. Go west young one. When the sun shines onto the surface at an angle the panel will still generate electricity but it will be less effective.

As we re in the northern hemisphere the best solar panel orientation is obviously south but. For most of the usa it s between 25 and 38 south to north. Your solar panel orientation is very important when it comes to maximising the amount of electricity that your solar panels will produce. However solar panels can be orientated on any roof that faces south of either east or west.

This may be for aesthetic purposes or sometimes because the south facing rooftop isn t fit for solar. Solar panels facing east or west won t get as much light as those on a southern facing roof. In the uk south facing panels will generate more than other orientations. If your roof faces east west rather than north south you have a few options.

For houston the ideal tilt for solar panels on a south facing roof is about 25 7. What happens if your roof isn t facing south. Solar panels are most effective when installed on south facing roofs. On a north facing roof at 25 7 that would be 5 362.

That optimal tilt will make you an estimated 7 732 kwh in a year from 5 5 kw of solar panels. For the northern hemisphere south facing roofs will give you the best results from solar panels. Many solar companies and installers will refuse requests to install systems of south facing roofs based on beliefs that the systems won t perform at all but actually this is a myth. Therefore directions like southwest or southeast are fine.

Well when it comes to solar panels west is second best. Panels mounted on a standard pitch roof facing east or west will produce approximately 15 less output than panels mounted on a south facing roof of a standard pitch. Solar panels perform at their best when the sun is shining straight on to the panels. Sometimes however the homeowner will want to add modules on the north facing roof.

One solution is to compensate by increasing the solar collector area either using more panels or larger collectors. In the northern hemisphere the sun crosses the sky a little to the south which means putting solar panels on a south facing roof is the best way for homeowners to capture the most solar energy. Solar panel orientation in the uk. You can add an extra panel if you have the room to make up the difference.

The direction that your roof faces also referred to as the azimuth angle is the primary factor determining how much sunshine your solar panels will see over the course of the day. Enter the south facing panel to date installing solar panels on a roof facing south has been a shunned option.