Should Solar Panels Face North

While south facing roofs are ideal for maximizing the electricity production for the individual panels it s not the end of the world if your home has and east west orientation.

Should solar panels face north.

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. But in general there s one big rule. This maximizes the energy production over the course of the year through both summer and winter. For australia solar power yields are higher when panels face north.

It s considered common knowledge that you want to point your solar modules south toward the equator assuming you are in the northern hemisphere. You should still go solar is what. North facing solar panels are often the best choice for people who are at home during the day. Or elsewhere in the northern hemisphere the best direction for solar panels to face is true south though there is an exception.

If you re in the u s. However solar panels can be orientated on any roof that faces south of either east or west. In fact all southern hemisphere locations should ideally position panels in a northerly direction. The effect of orientation on solar output the direction solar panels should ideally face for optimum sun exposure varies depending on location.

The only roof face you would never install solar panels on is the north face assuming you re living in the northern hemisphere. The more sunlight reaches your solar panels the more electricity you can generate and the more money you ll be able to save on your electric bill. Therefore directions like southwest or southeast are fine. Most solar arrays are installed at a tilt.

Sometimes however the homeowner will want to add modules on the north facing roof. In general there s one big rule. This is so that you can expose your solar panels to as much light as possible to optimize their energy production. Panels that face north will produce the most electricity overall.

We built a model of a generic solar panel and calculated its output for every possible placement including orientation like the face of a clock with 12 as north and 6 as south and tilt from 0. The more sunlight reaches your solar panels the more electricity you can generate and the more money you ll be able to save on your electric bill.