Best Way To Aim Solar Panels

Tilt the panels to your latitude.

Best way to aim solar panels.

Comparing solar panels in series vs. Place all your solar panels facing due north for optimal power generation. The most optimum direction to face your solar panels is somewhere between south and west. Generally the closer to south the better and a vertical or near vertical orientation for the low winter sun works best.

Recently the new york times and popular science even purported that solar panels should face west rather than south to avoid unintended consequences. The capacity of a solar panel to produce energy is measured in watts which is calculated by multiplying a solar panel s voltage by the amps of current it produces when a solar installer builds a solar energy system they need to find the right balance of voltage and amps to ensure that the system performs well. In general there s one big rule. If you are able to adjust the angle of your solar panels a few times per year here is the adjustment schedule we recommend.

Angles of 10 00 am and 2 00 pm are fine too only losing about 10 of the 12 00 pm orientation. Tilt the panels to your latitude minus 15. If you re in the u s. You could use tools if you wanted to but you can just as quickly figure it out with none at all.

However each of the above only considers. Because north facing solar panels produce the most electricity overall they will have the greatest environmental benefit. Panels facing west produce around 12 less electricity overall than north facing solar panels. The details of the experiment.

It is at this location that your panels will receive the maximum sunlight throughout the day. Locating the best direction to point your solar panels can be accomplished very quickly. In order to collect energy more efficiently solar panels should be angled to face as close to the sun as possible. The rule is that if you live in the southern hemisphere you should point your panels true north and if you live in the northern hemisphere you should point them true south.

The power level in 6 large batteries was used to measure how much power was collected over a few day cycles from different arrays of solar panels facing different directions. Tilt the panels to your latitude plus 15. They also produce less electricity in the morning but more in the afternoon. If your panels are aimed for where the sun is between 11 00 am and 1 00 pm you ll be nearly perfect.

Or elsewhere in the northern hemisphere the best direction for solar panels to face is true south though there is an exception. If your roof does not face the right direction then surface mounted panels or pole mounted panels may be your best bet.