Sprucebeach
New Member
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2021
- Messages
- 12
I'm considering a grid-tied system that would also be off grid during our frequent power failures. I would anticipate putting a row of panels in portrait mode just below the peak of my roof (that faces 187°) and another row below them across the upper part of the front-porch roof - about 30 panels total. My house is in a clearing on a ridge heavily wooded with mostly deciduous trees and the roof is the only location where panels can be mounted. Tree cutting isn't an option for us, and trimming enough to get good sun in the winter would remove most of the blocking trees' vegetation.
For six months of the year both parts of the roof are in full sun for close to five hours a day. But as the year wears on the morning shadows are slower to sweep off the right edge of the roof and the afternoon shadows come in earlier from the left and inexorably advance higher and higher on the roof. Before the leaves fall the shade can be heavy. Below is the roof on Oct. 22 at 10:00, noon, and 1:00 p.m. (All times are corrected to Standard Time.)
After the leaves are mostly off the trees more light falls on the roof but it is mottled by the abundance of tree trunks and branches. Below is a series of shots from beginning of December.
Unfortunately my schedule didn't permit a noon shot but I think the picture is pretty clear without it: For the darkest three-or-so months of the year only small patches of uninterrupted sunlight would move across the panels. Most panels would see mottled sunlight most of the time.
I have two questions.
1. How much PV will I be able to get during these winter months? Can I get any at all?
2. Assuming there is PV to be gotten, what is the optimum way to get it? Microinverters? Optimizers? And how would I configure the string layout?
As you can probably tell from where this is posted, I'm a complete novice who is trying to educate himself so as to be able to make an informed decision about whether I should go solar. I'd welcome any comments.
For six months of the year both parts of the roof are in full sun for close to five hours a day. But as the year wears on the morning shadows are slower to sweep off the right edge of the roof and the afternoon shadows come in earlier from the left and inexorably advance higher and higher on the roof. Before the leaves fall the shade can be heavy. Below is the roof on Oct. 22 at 10:00, noon, and 1:00 p.m. (All times are corrected to Standard Time.)
After the leaves are mostly off the trees more light falls on the roof but it is mottled by the abundance of tree trunks and branches. Below is a series of shots from beginning of December.
Unfortunately my schedule didn't permit a noon shot but I think the picture is pretty clear without it: For the darkest three-or-so months of the year only small patches of uninterrupted sunlight would move across the panels. Most panels would see mottled sunlight most of the time.
I have two questions.
1. How much PV will I be able to get during these winter months? Can I get any at all?
2. Assuming there is PV to be gotten, what is the optimum way to get it? Microinverters? Optimizers? And how would I configure the string layout?
As you can probably tell from where this is posted, I'm a complete novice who is trying to educate himself so as to be able to make an informed decision about whether I should go solar. I'd welcome any comments.