Do Solar Panels Produce More In Summer Than Winter

It turns out that you might get your best solar energy output in the spring and not the summer as you might think.

Do solar panels produce more in summer than winter.

Winter months are actually good for solar energy production as long as your panels aren t covered by snow. It sounds perversely counter intuitive but when the t. Solar panels only require light not heat to continue functioning correctly. As the temperature around the solar panels i e.

Solar panels need light not heat. When you normally think of solar power you probably envision hot arid climates like arizona or southern california. For more information about solar power during the winter months talk. Power generation in solar panels is more related to solar radiation and less to the amount of surrounding heat.

Find out how snow and winter temperatures affect how much electricity solar panels produce here in massachusetts. Of course our oregon and washington cloudy skies produce far less solar power than sunny skies but when the sun does peek through the panels work better than they do during the. Solar panels generally produce about 40 60 less energy during the months of december and january than they do during the months of july and august. These shorter days will produce less solar energy than those in the summer so be prepared to use your net metering credits.

While utah has many sunny days during winter months there s no arguing the fact that winter days are shorter than summer days due to our distance from the equator. This means that your panels will produce more power for each precious hour of sunshine during the short days of winter. For example many california residents will take advantage of friendly net metering laws to build up a substantial credit during the summer months when their panels produce the most energy and then use the credit to help offset the increased utility bill costs during winter. But how will your solar photovoltaic pv panels perform.

This is a well known phenomenon and you will see it listed in the specifications on your solar panel datasheet. Boston solar is the number one residential solar contractor based in massachusetts and is sharing valuable insights on what it s like to own a solar energy system during the winter. And while solar panels produce less energy due to the days being shorter and the sun being lower in the sky solar panels can still be a great way to take care of some if not all of your energy needs in the winter. This means that solar power generation is significantly less during the winter than it is during the summer.

Will my solar panels produce enough energy in the winter. Like most electronics solar panels function more efficiently in cold conditions than in hot. After all sunshine and warm weather go hand in hand allowing you to generate more clean energy per square inch.