While our office may be off the beaten track, at MV Solar we are still in the loop with current news and trends in the industry.
So when we started hearing that panels should be facing west, you can imagine we were a bit surprised, and curious.
But, all it takes is a few words with our solar specialist, Michael Valantine, to learn there is a lot more to it.
It is not really an easy question to answer. A number of factors need to be considered (when designing a solar power system).
For example, you may not have the roof space to be able to fit all your panels facing the same way; or your usage may necessitate a particular layout to get the most benefit from the system.
Other factors that your MV Solar consultant will look at are tariffs, whether you are on gross feed or net metered system, and tilt and angle of roof/ panels for your particular enquiry.
The most simple answer, although it does not properly explain the entire situation, is that by having the panels facing north you get a nice bell-curve of exposure throughout the day.
This allows the panels to have as much time in the sunlight as possible, and in turn generates the most electricity in your system.
“To get the most out of the panels it is best to have them facing true north, not magnetic north, because they will be in the sun for the longest period of the day,” Michael said.
“At MV Solar we pay attention to loads, roof space, orientation, look at tariffs and individual loads to design a system to suit your specific needs.
“As you can see there are many questions which we have to assess, in order to find the appropriate solution to meet the individual customers needs."
So, if your system has been installed by us, you can be confident that we have already looked at all the considerations to help get the best result out of your solar experience and most importantly, save you money.