Believe it or not, the angle of your solar panels can affect energy production. It also determines your annual savings. The article will provide you with the details for angling your solar panels.
The Significance Of Solar Panel Orientation
You’re going to learn two main things in this article:
- Factors that influence the optimum tilt angle.
- The optimum angle for solar panels.
Solar panels only work well when they get the most sunlight. You would probably need a solar tracking system, so your solar panels face the sun directly and follow it throughout the day. However, such systems are expensive.
Therefore, the next closest thing to ideal energy production is keeping the solar panels at a perpendicular 90-degree angle to the sun for as long as possible during the day. This means making them face the equator at an angle between 30 and 45 degrees relative to the horizon.
Solar panels in the southern hemisphere will face north, while solar panels in the northern hemisphere will face south. You can’t have high energy production or significant savings if your solar panels are installed at the wrong angle.
The Right Angle
Your optimal solar panel angle depends on the latitude of where your home is located. Finding the optimal tilt angle is difficult, so you should leave it to professional solar panel installers and designers.
Azimuth vs Tilt Angle:
In positioning solar panels, you’ll come across two angles:
- The azimuth angle is the horizontal angle that solar panels face in relation to the Equator.
- The tilt angle is the vertical angle of the solar panels facing the sky. Also called the elevation angle. The lower the angle, the more “up” towards the sky solar panels face.
Factors Determining The Best Angle
The weather, your location, and your roof will determine the best angle for your solar panels:
Weather:
The height of the Sun changes throughout the year, and everyone has differing seasons depending upon their location. So, you’ll have to optimise your panels’ angles for ideal energy production. The perfect angle is bound to change from summer to winter. Solar panels will usually be installed to provide balanced energy in both seasons.
Location:
Your longitude and latitude are important as they play a significant role in influencing the ideal angle for your solar panels. The equator receives the most sunlight, so you should face your panels in that direction.
The tilt angle decreases the closer you get to the equator. Once you are at the equator, then you can just place your panels flat on the roof. Also, look out for peak hours. These are the times when the Sun shines the brightest.
Roof:
Your roof must also meet some conditions to have panels installed on it. Experts from your solar company will tell you about everything. They’ll mainly look at:
Roof Shape:
The best roof designs for solar panel installation are hip, flat, and gabe. More architectural elements on your roof will make the installation of solar panels more difficult.
Angle:
You need to keep the angle of your house in mind, too, since homes can range from flat to steep roofs. You might also need additional support structures to support your solar panels. Calculating these structures can become even more difficult if your roof has corners, forms, and pitches.
Shading:
Blocking any sunlight in the case of solar panels is detrimental to solar energy production since your aim is to maximise energy production. You should place your solar panels where there are no shades. Remember to remove any objects nearby that could set a shadow on your solar panels.
Conclusion
Finding the perfect solar panel angle will take time, patience, trial, and error, but it will be worth it. You will have saved money on your electricity bills with increased energy production. Plus, you’ll make the most of these solar panels while producing zero pollutants.