Optimal Angle For Solar Panels In San Diego

For the best results solar panels should be oriented towards the south.

Optimal angle for solar panels in san diego.

Latitude in san diego. Latitude in san francisco. Books and articles on solar energy often give the advice that the tilt should be equal to your latitude plus 15 degrees in winter or minus 15 degrees in summer. A general rule for optimal annual energy production is to set the solar panel tilt angle equal to the geographical latitude.

The question is at what angle from horizontal should the panels be tilted. For instance if your latitude is 34 the optimum tilt angle for your solar panels during winter will be 34 15 49. The summer optimum tilt angle on the other hand will be 34 15 19. The solar radiation that the panels receive is almost the same.

This is because the sun is always in the southern half of the sky in the northern hemisphere. Latitude in los angeles. 29 23 98 33 san diego calif. Calculating the best solar angle for california.

In order to figure out what the best angle to tilt your solar panels you must first figure out your latitude. It turns out that you can do better than this about 4 better. At 90 from true south therefore east and west production can drop to 30. 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.

However if the panels are turned at an angle greater than 45 compared to true south production begins to decrease significantly. Calculating the ideal angle for your solar panels is not that difficult. It turns out that you can do better than this about 4 better. 32 42 117 10.

For a latitude over 50 the most ideal angle will end up being approximately 45 degrees. Here are some different latitude numbers for cities in the state of california. Essentially the closer a solar panel is located to the equator the more the panel should be pointing straight up. For a latitude between 25 to 50 take your latitude multiply by 0 87 after that you will add 3 1 degrees.

For a latitude up to 25 take your latitude and multiply it by 0 87. The next question is at what angle from horizontal should the panels be tilted. Orientation of the panels. As a general rule of thumb keep in mind that the panels need to be more vertical during winter to face the lower sun directly and more tilted towards the ground during summer to face the higher sun.

It just depends on where you live.