Pike Road Solar Power Information & Peak Sun Hours

Solar Green Energy Summary for Pike Road, Alabama

Lattitude: 32.2909

Sunlight

Fixed Tilt Sunlight Hours: 5.1 hours per day

1-Axis Tilt Sunlight Hours: 6.3 hours per day

2-Axis Tilt Sunlight Hours: 6.5 hours per day

Peak sun hours are a vital measurement to understand when considering the installation of solar panels. Peak sun hours are not the same as total sunlight hours because not every hour of sunlight during the day has enough strength and solar insolation to qualify as a peak sun hour. The rule of thumb is that a peak sun hour is when the intensity of the sun that is hitting your solar panel is providing at least 1,000 watts per square meter. This is an arbitrary number, but it is a number where most solar panels will be producing an efficient output and not underperforming due to sunshine that is not strong enough or direct enough.

The equator has a latitude of zero while Pike Road has a latitude of 32.3. Any city located on the equator will receive the most sunlight throughout the year because the sunlight arrives at a perpendicular 90 degree angle to the earth at the equator. The further you are from the equator the more your daily sunlight hours can vary.

Depending on your output needs, to get more out of your solar panels you can either upgrade your technology, buy more panels, or buy different tracking type panels. A fixed solar panel remains fixed at one angle throughout the year. A 1-axis panel will produce more output because it follows the path of the sun from sunrise to sunset to maximize sun exposure. Even more productive is a 2-axis panel that not only follows the sun's path throughout the day, but also accounts for the more subtle sun changes throughout the year with the different seasons.

Peak sun hours are greatly affected by weather patterns. Cloud coverage is a huge factor in peak sun hours per day because heavy cloud coverage will diminish the power of the solar insolation. You can use historical climate data to estimate average cloud and weather coverage, but it will obviously vary slightly from year to year.

In Pike Road you can look at the average peak sun hours of a fixed solar panel mount, which will be 5.1 hours. This number iis an estimate based on data of previous years. With a tracking mount in Pike Road you could theoretically increase the amount of peak sun hours per with a 1-axis mount, and get 6.3 hours, or a 2-axis mount and potentially increase your average to 6.5 hours.


Solar Businesses in Pike Road, Alabama




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