Solar panels should face south for any home in america to obtain maximum power generation.
Installing solar panels facing south.
However solar panels can be orientated on any roof that faces south of either east or west.
To correct the compass reading your solar installer will calculate the magnetic declination of your site.
Updated may 18 2020.
If your roof does not face the right direction then surface mounted panels or pole mounted panels may be your best bet.
If you have an unshaded west facing roof you can still install solar panels and save money.
This being the case the general best practice to date has always been to position solar panels facing south in order to capture the maximum amount of sunlight overall.
Net energy metering and time of use.
The optimum placement to maximise generation is to face the panels south but that might not be possible for your property.
But keep in mind every house is unique.
We ran a few calculations and found that se and sw facing placements can expect to generate around 94 of the electricity a south facing install would.
Generally it s common knowledge in the solar industry that these south facing panels should be tilted between a 30 and 40 degree angle.
A study of 110 000 california houses with rooftop solar systems confirmed that a vast majority of the panels are pointed south.
Workers for solarcity installing solar panels in camarillo calif.
In sydney south facing solar panels will typically produce around 28 less energy than north facing panels and the steeper the roof the less electricity they will produce.
In other words to get the same amount of electricity as a south facing installation a west facing one would need to be 25 bigger.
The most optimum direction to face your solar panels is somewhere between south and west.
It is at this location that your panels will receive the maximum sunlight throughout the day.
Therefore directions like southwest or southeast are fine.
True south can also be calculated at noon when shadows from vertical objects run north south.
The conventional wisdom says no solar should never be installed on a south facing roof.
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.
25 x 80 20.
For most australians south is the worst direction modules can face and some people consider installing panels facing south almost as large a mistake as installing them upside down.
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.
The direction solar panels should face is true south a k a.
