Roof Slope For Solar Panels

Many roofs are going to have slopes between 30 and 40 degrees which means that solar panels can lie flush against the roof and produce enough electricity for attractive returns.

Roof slope for solar panels.

If you are trying to install solar panels on a steep roof it may not be possible to place panels at the optimal tilt with traditional racking systems. Where panels cover more than 33 of the roof a 36 in wide path is required on both sides of the ridge. There are several factors in your control when it comes to finding the ideal pitch for your solar panels. So for this roof the optimum angle is 35 a bit over an 8 12 roof slope and at this angle the roof generates 1 265kwh m2 day.

Away from a horizontal ridge on both sides to create the 36 in wide path. Optimal electricity production occurs when solar panels face south at a tilt equal to 30. The energy reduces as we move away from this optimum angle. For example the latitude of los angeles california is 34 degrees so the tilt of your solar panels would be 34 degrees.

However the panels can be installed anywhere between 10 to 35 deg with negligible efficiency loss. At 30 the energy drops to 1 260kwh m2 year a reduction of just 0 4. Solar contractors recommend using the latitude of your home s location as the degree of tilt. However even if you lower the tilt of your roof all the way down to 5 production only decreases by about 10 percent.

The angle of your roof actually has less impact on solar panel performance than the direction your solar energy system faces.