I just talked to a person who had her panels installed on the east side of her house, based on the sunrun person saying the best. Her west facing has nothing.
Am I missing something that east is good?
Am I missing something that east is good?
I would disagree with west being better than east, without specifics. From a pure generation standpoint - that is maximizing kWh for the year - I would expect east to be better, because it is typically cooler in the morning. Of course, specifics really do matter - if you tend to have morning fog or afternoon storms, for example, that will have a big effect.Depends on the exact location’s specifics of shading, horizon blocked by mountain or buildings, angle of the roof, etc. But in order of generation potential without those specifics: south, west, east, north. Of course then there are all the directions in between the cardinal directions, SW, SE, ESE, WSW...![]()
I did ask her to try and remember why, since I learn new stuff every day.IMO, in NorCal, westward facing should be better (I'm in Contra Costa County). At least around here, there's a somewhat frequent occurrence where the morning has a bit of haze that burns off around 10am. So if you look at my production charts on some days, it's choppy on the left side but smooth on the right side.
If I had to choose between East and West I'd pick West to get more of that smooth curve.
And, technically you want West-facing to maximize the TOU plans. The EV2A shoulder and near-dusk peak encourages making as much energy late into the day as possible. Assuming she doesn't have Powerwalls, she'd rather produce energy later than earlier since every little bit helps.
But what do I know; Sunrun is the nation's largest solar installer and originated here in NorCal. You would assume they have some body of knowledge to suggest East is better?
If you could share her address (or one close by), we could look her house up on Google Project Sunroof. Without knowing where her house is located and what obstructions are around, we can't be certain which direction is best for her house.I just talked to a person who had her panels installed on the east side of her house, based on the sunrun person saying the best. Her west facing has nothing.
Am I missing something that east is good?
BTW, my neighbor just had his solar system installed by Sunrun and his layout looks horrible and definitely won't produce the maximum amount possible. His house is an A-frame (facing east and west) and a wing with due south exposure. They put all of his panels on the east and west facing roofs...the same ones that are shaded half the year because of the mountains. Not only that, but a tree on the west will block out nearly all production from his west facing panels once they leaf out. They put zero panels on his roof that faces due south. So...don't necessarily believe everything someone from Sunrun tells you.
Why is West better than East if there are no obstructions or weather issues?I recently completed a 36kW install on a shop with a N-S ridge and a S facing porch. Put ~28kW on the W side, ~8kW on the S side and 0kW on the E side. Peak demand is at ~7pm. West is best.
Here is a cut out from zillow.If you could share her address (or one close by), we could look her house up on Google Project Sunroof. Without knowing where her house is located and what obstructions are around, we can't be certain which direction is best for her house.
Our house faces southeast. We have panels facing east, southeast, west and northwest. This helps our system produce throughout the day. While we don't have any trees that could block our system, we have mountains to the east and west which shade our panels for an hour in the morning and an hour at night for about half of the year. The other half of the year, the sun is up high enough that the panels aren't shaded.
BTW, my neighbor just had his solar system installed by Sunrun and his layout looks horrible and definitely won't produce the maximum amount possible. His house is an A-frame (facing east and west) and a wing with due south exposure. They put all of his panels on the east and west facing roofs...the same ones that are shaded half the year because of the mountains. Not only that, but a tree on the west will block out nearly all production from his west facing panels once they leaf out. They put zero panels on his roof that faces due south. So...don't necessarily believe everything someone from Sunrun tells you.
Why is West better than East if there are no obstructions or weather issues?
Peak demand is at ~7pm.
Because
It's a better match of supply and demand. It may not matter yet but it will soon.
View attachment 643136
Here is a cut out from zillow.
23883 Woodhaven Pl, Auburn, CA 95602
That would be cool to have access to that swLol imagine how you’ll react if you get a copy of Aurora...
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