By Keira Collin
Solar panel installations are definitely an investment for many of us, and it follows that we need to make sure that the investment is worth our time, effort, and of course, money. Needless to say, there are now more property owners who are going for a solar PV installation, and a simple walk or drive around your community will probably show you a lot more roofs with solar panels. But for those who decide to invest in it or are interested in investing in a solar panel system, one of the biggest questions is whether or not their property – specifically their roof – is suitable for it. So how can you really know if your roof is suitable for a solar panel installation? Here, your top questions are answered.
The good news
The good news is, most of the homes in the UK are suitable for the installation of solar panels, but there are still some factors you may have to remember and think about. This would include the direction of your roof, where your solar panels will be facing, the pitch of your roof, and so on.
· The direction of your roof
When it comes to the direction of your roof, you simply have to consider whether or not your roof is facing south. With a roof facing south, you can produce more electricity, especially because roofs that face south get the best exposure to the sun and its intensity for a more extended period compared to roofs that face north, west, or east. But this doesn’t mean that if you have a north-, east-, or west-facing roof, you should give up on a solar panel installation altogether. If your roof is facing a different direction, you can still reap a lot of benefits from a solar array. For example, if your roof is facing east, your system will get a lot of sun exposure in the morning, while a roof facing west can take in more of the sun’s energy during the afternoon and evening.
The only difference is that roofs that face south can maximise the sun’s energy the most, and this can deliver prospective savings of almost £200 in your first year alone. Meanwhile, a roof facing another direction can still give you savings of almost £100 in the first year.
· The pitch of your roof
Any expert in solar panels (such as the solar Manchester specialists from Atlantic Renewables) would tell you that the best pitch for any roof when it comes to solar panel installations is between the angles of 30 and 40 degrees. But once again, if your roof isn’t at an angle of between 30 and 40 degrees, this doesn’t mean that you can’t install – and benefit from – solar panels. The angle of 30 to 40 degrees just means that you can fully optimise your solar panels. A solar panel system can still effectively absorb the sun’s energy even when they are placed horizontally. But note that solar panels installed at less than a 12 degree angle horizontally will not have the capacity to self-clean, so you need to make sure they are cleaned more often.
Image attributed to Pixabay.com
