The Best Angle for a Solar Panel

The angle of a solar panel is important for optimizing power going to the batteries. At our latitude, the tilt of our solar panels should be:

We have solar panels with a fixed angle and others with an adjustable angle. Here is why.

The chicken house has a fixed panel with an angle of approximately 45 deg. We need to optimize power during the short days of winter months to charge the battery for lights. During the summer months, power is not needed so there is no need to adjust the panel.

The solar panel on the outdoor kitchen is set at approximately 20 deg. Power is seldom used during the year so we just set the panel at an average angle between summer and winter.

We have three solar panels on our home which are used to provide power to our freezer to freeze ice. Because of access and difficulty to adjust the panels, we fixed the angle at 14 deg. to maximize solar power during the summer. During the winter the freezer does not need work as hard to stay cold, so the reduced angle is adequate. We also have a wind turbine on this system.

On @mericanhomestead home, I made the solar panel angle adjustable as well as the ability to swivel the panel to follow the sun when necessary. This solar array provides power for telephone and internet. My son-in-law works from home and the power demand is constant year round, so it is important to be able to adjust the solar panel as needed.

So you can see there are many variables and things to consider for setting the angle of your solar panels. I trust this is helpful as you think about having solar power for you home.

Have a great day and thanks for your up-vote, Tim and Joann