Best Orientation For Solar Panels In Southern Hemisphere

If your property is located in the northern hemisphere panels facing south will perform best.

Best orientation for solar panels in southern hemisphere.

In the northern hemisphere the general rule for solar panel placement is solar panels should face true south and in the southern true north. When your two best options are east or west which should you choose. Are vital inputs in order to accurately calculate the solar power potential for a property. Locating the best direction to point your solar panels can be accomplished very quickly.

If you are in the southern hemisphere then face them north. 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 sun s movements throughout the day. In fact all southern hemisphere locations should ideally position panels in a northerly direction.

The ideal direction that solar panels must face changes depending on whether you live in the northern hemisphere or the southern hemisphere. It is best to face the panels south as the sun is always in the south within the northern hemisphere. In the northern hemisphere panels must face south and. But not everyone has a perfectly oriented roof.

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. The rule is that if you live in the southern hemisphere you should point your panels true north and if you live in the northern hemisphere you should point them true south. If the orientation is not optimal it does not matter whether you have the best angle for solar panels. Solar panels should always face true south in the northern hemisphere north in the southern hemisphere tilted from the hoizontal at a degree equal to your latitude plus 15 degrees in winter or minus 15 degrees in summer.

However there is a difference between magnetic south and true south that must be considered. Based on the movements of the sun passive solar buildings typically have windows glazing on the southern facing side of the building in order to absorb the sun s heat energy to warm a building during the winter. Usually this is the best direction because solar panels will receive direct light throughout the day. This is because the sun is always in the southern half of the sky in the northern hemisphere.

As we have mentioned before in the southern hemisphere due north is usually the best orientation for panels. You could use tools if you wanted to but you can just as quickly figure it out with none at all. Orientation south facing windows passive solar houses typically have windows on the southern side of the building. Generally speaking the panels should be facing towards the equator.