Penn Yan Solar Power Information & Peak Sun Hours

Solar Green Energy Summary for Penn Yan, New York

Lattitude: 42.661

Sunlight

Fixed Tilt Sunlight Hours: 4.3 hours per day

1-Axis Tilt Sunlight Hours: 5.4 hours per day

2-Axis Tilt Sunlight Hours: 5.6 hours per day

The average amount of peak sun hours in a day is a different and more useful number as it relates to solar panels than total sun hours. Total sun hours are exactly what you would expect; the total amount of hours that the sun is out during a 24 hour period. Peak sun hours, on the other hand, are the total number of hours in a day where the sunshine is strong enough to to be absorbed and used by solar panels. Sunlight early in the morning or late at night is often not strong enough to count toward peak sun hours. Because of this, total sun hours will always be more than peak sun hours. Looking at the average peak sun hours in Penn Yan throughout the year can help you better estimate the amount of solar panels you will need to power your business or home.

Knowing that the latitude of Penn Yan is 42.7 can be helpful for understanding total sunlight hour variance. As you approach the equator latitude approaches zero. The closer the latitude is to zero, the more consistent the daily sunlight hours are throughout the year. Total sunlight hour consistency simply makes planning for your solar power needs easier, but it is certainly not a requirement.

The sun moves through the sky during the day, and changes positions in the sky throughout the year as the seasons change. A fixed solar panel remains fixed in position during this movement. So, although it is effective in capturing sunlight, a 1-axis or 2-axis panel can be more efficient. A 1-axis panel tracks the sun's movement throughout the day from sunrise to sunset. In addition to that, the 2-axis panel also accounts for the movement throughout the year.

The sun is a great ball of gas that rises and sets every day that the earth rotates while in orbit around the sun. Barring any major disasters this is a very predictable occurance every day. Latitude helps predict this even more, narrowing it down to the minute for sunrise and sunset. But some things aren’t as predictable that will greatly influence the efficiency of solar panels. Weather and cloud coverage for example can greatly diminish peak sun hours on any given day. Thick storm clouds will block a high percentage of the sun's rays, resulting in lower output of your solar panels. Weather needs to be factored into deciding when to use your system, or how much output one expects to get.

We can use previous years of data to estimate the amount of peak sun hours in Penn Yan. A fixed tilt mount for example will receive 4.3 average hours per day. For more efficiency for your system in Penn Yan you could use a 1-axis tracking mount and increase your daily peak sun average to 5.4 hours, or even further with a 2-axis panel to get an average of 5.6 hours.


Solar Businesses in Penn Yan, New York

1 Keuka Business Park
Penn Yan, NY
(315) 571-0777
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Penn Yan, NY
(315) 760-5176
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