What Direction Should Solar Panels Face In Florida

To correct the compass reading your solar installer will calculate the magnetic declination of your site.

What direction should solar panels face in florida.

The following is a guest post by dr. The system has been in service for almost three years and the data shows that the two east facing solar panels have only 2 4 less output so far. Solar panels should face south for any home in america to obtain maximum power generation. True south can also be calculated at noon when shadows from vertical objects run north south.

There are two solar panels on the east side. Since the majority of solar panel owners keep their system on the grid we can split this grouping into simply those who pay for energy based on a tou payment. It has solar panels mostly on the south side of the home. If you live in the usa or any other country in the northern hemisphere the best direction to face solar panels is south.

Therefore directions like southwest or southeast are fine. The direction that your solar panels face is ultimately dependent on whether or not your system is connected through net energy metering nem and under a time of use tou payment structure. Joshua rhodes a postdoctoral research fellow in the webber energy group and the energy institute at the university. However you would want to face your solar panels in the opposite direction of where your shadows face.

However the electricity system is not as simple as it sometimes seems and the best direction to face solar panels may actually be west. The conventional wisdom in the northern hemisphere is that the best direction to face solar panels is south since that is generally where they d receive the most sunlight. Take this home in cape coral for example. However if the local power company charges higher prices in the afternoon your panels should face west to maximize the dollar savings.

While the angle of your solar panels is important a more important factor in your energy production is going to be the direction your panels face. Solar south or geographic south. Net energy metering and time of use. The direction solar panels should face is true south a k a.

Since most sunlight comes from the south this will make your panels more productive. It is at this location that your panels will receive the maximum sunlight throughout the day. The most optimum direction to face your solar panels is somewhere between south and west. You could even stick a stick in the ground and take note.

However solar panels can be orientated on any roof that faces south of either east or west. On the other hand if you live in the southern hemisphere you can use this same technique. So what direction should solar panels face. This is because the sun is always in the southern half of the sky in the northern hemisphere.

If your roof does not face the right direction then surface mounted panels or pole mounted panels may be your best bet. Examples of solar panel output at different orientations.