Solar Panels On North West Facing Roof

Where on my roof if your roof faces east west rather than north south you have a few options.

Solar panels on north west facing roof.

Why orientation matters with rooftop solar. If the east facing panels still produce plenty of energy from the morning and early afternoon sun the west facing panels would likely produce energy from mid morning on. In either case you ll generally take a 10 15 power hit compared to having them facing the ideal direction north. However solar panels can be orientated on any roof that faces south of either east or west.

Solar panels should face south for any home in america to obtain maximum power generation. Put your panels on the west roof and take as much sun as you can in the evenings. The preference is a north facing roof but there arguments about the benefits of placing panels on a west facing roof. Split your array in two and put half on the east and half on the west although arguably you would get similar results to the above two options.

North facing panels on the other hand generally produce much less energy than south facing panels and usually present challenges for homeowners looking to go solar as panels installed on these roofs will not produce enough to make financial sense. In terms of the amount of power produced facing your panels east will produce exactly the same amount of power as facing them west. Not great to be sure but probably not as bad as you might expect. 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.

In general solar panels that are oriented directly east or directly west will produce about 20 percent less electricity than if they were facing south. Solar panels facing east or west won t get as much light as those on a southern facing roof. If you re roof runs directly through the east west orientation there would be no real difference in the energy generated by the panels and the installer is correct about the energy loss through the additional wiring although it should be minimal. They would then be in the shade during the first half of the day.

Depending on your location and roof pitch you re going to lose somewhere between 10 20 efficiency as a result of not having panels facing in a due north direction. Since they typically lay flat solar panels most often face the same direction as your roof and your only choice is really. If you have the option to place the panels in more of a north east or north west direction it is recommended. The tilt of the roof matters a great deal.

Even with this decrease in performance solar panels will produce enough electricity to save you hundreds of dollars a year. With a 2 12 pitched roof 9 5 tilt the south facing array will produce 1 361 kwh kwp. Updated may 18 2020. It really depends on your home and your roof but adding panels to an unshaded west facing roof can be a great move.