We get this question all the time, mostly due to aesthetic concerns. The location is obviously a huge factor in this decision, but the mounting pitch is also very important. I did a PVWATTS-based study recently based on our local area, and the results are here:
http://floridasolardesigngroup.com/solar-electricity-output-based-on-tilt-and-orientation/ Other related resources: http://floridasolardesigngroup.com/pitch-solar-panels-on-my-roof-is-it-necessary/ http://floridasolardesigngroup.com/can-i-put-solar-panels-on-my-north-roof-in-southwest-florida/ The bottom line is that the marginal cost of adding solar panels to a north roof may be completely viable in some scenarios, and even a completely north facing array in others. It often depends on the investment requirements of the buyer. I can see benefits to off-grid systems, too, where production on even a north vertical wall can provide critical power at certain times of day at certain latitudes. If aligning production with consumption is important in a situation, every pitch and azimuth is on the table for analysis. Jason Szumlanski Florida Solar Design Group On Tue, Jul 28, 2015 at 1:21 AM, Peter Parrish < peter.parr...@calsolareng.com> wrote: > I recently read a short piece that caught me up short, and I quote: > > “The fast dropping cost of solar, while a huge boon to the adoption of > solar PV, has counter-intuitively altered design parameters. No longer is > the north-facing roof considered unusable because limited application in > less-than optimal orientations can still show a positive net benefit. > Arrays are thus designed now with elements or sub-arrays in these > locations, increasing overall kW installation while reducing the energy > production per capacity installed. This might have been anticipated based > on sheer economic analysis from a users perspective, but so long has solar > been expensive that these less optimal orientations were never seriously > considered.” > > > > I doubt that the individual who wrote this piece came to these conclusions > him/herself. Does anyone know of a recent article that argued this > perspective? Is this an emerging design practice? If so, I’d like to know > more about it. > > > > - Peter > > > > Peter T. Parrish, Ph.D. > > President, SolarGnosis > > 1107 Fair Oaks Ave., Suite 351 > > South Pasadena, CA 91030 > > (323) 839-6108 > > peter...@pobox.com > > >
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