Do Solar Panels Need To Face South

Best direction for my panels.

Do solar panels need to face south. The installer said that he need to point the solar panel north. Although doing this only brings about a 3 improvement in energy collection it will be a big deal if your solar array is huge or your extreme condition requires getting as much energy conversion as possible. We can install panels on south east or west facing roofs. 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.

In texas s ercot territory 84 percent of electricity in west facing systems was used in the home. Solar panels convert light into dc electricity. The most optimum direction to face your solar panels is somewhere between south and west. This is because the sun is always in the southern half of the sky in the northern hemisphere.

What you are doing is optimizing your energy production for maximum savings with your utility company. Solar panels however need to face solar or geographic south which is the direction towards the south pole. If your roof faces slightly off south or even straight east west it is still very likely that solar pv could generate savings and income for you. To do this you should point your solar panel west.

When you point your solar panels west you are not maximizing the total amount of energy that is produced. According to the concord consortium makers of energy3d solar energy modeling software a home in boston ma with panels that face west would get 80 of the electricity that a house with south facing. In any pv system related project we tend to set up solar panels to face the solar south rather than the magnetic south. It actually facing north east.

For the best results solar panels should be oriented towards the south. If i was to turn in around on the same bracket it is mounted to it would be facing south to south west. Face panels south for non tou ratepayers. If your roof does not face the right direction then surface mounted panels or pole mounted panels may be.

During times of peak demand which is defined as 3 p m. By the same reasoning if the solar panel is located in the southern hemisphere the panel should instead face in the direction of true north. Does my house have to face south for solar to work. I was a little confused as i always thought the panel needed to be facing south.

North is the only direction that we don t want to put panels on. West facing solar panels get less sun than those that face south but it s not as little as you may think. It is at this location that your panels will receive the maximum sunlight throughout the day. Or you could point the needle north south and face the panels.

The short answer is no.