Maple Falls Solar Power Information & Peak Sun Hours
Solar Green Energy Summary for Maple Falls, Washington
Lattitude: 48.9135
Sunlight
Fixed Tilt Sunlight Hours: 3.5 hours per day
1-Axis Tilt Sunlight Hours: 4.5 hours per day
2-Axis Tilt Sunlight Hours: 6.4 hours per day
When trying to calculate your solar power needs there are a variety of factors to consider. Panel type and location, electricity needs, number of panels needed etc. One key to figuring out the math is factoring in the average peak sunlight hours in a day. Unlike total sunlight hours, peak sunlight hours are only when the sun is strong enough to power your solar panel. Using this number can help determine your needs to power your home or business in Maple Falls, Washington.
Knowing that the latitude of Maple Falls is 48.9 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.
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.
There are more variables than latitude that can change average peak sun hours. Weather patterns and geography will influence solar insolation that reaches your system. Thick grey storm clouds for example will block out a lot of the sun to the point where there may be no peak sun hours in the middle of the day when the sun is usually very powerful. Trees and mountains can deflect the sunlight, so be sure your solar panel is selectively placed.
In Maple Falls you can look at the average peak sun hours of a fixed solar panel mount, which will be 3.5 hours. This number iis an estimate based on data of previous years. With a tracking mount in Maple Falls you could theoretically increase the amount of peak sun hours per with a 1-axis mount, and get 4.5 hours, or a 2-axis mount and potentially increase your average to 6.4 hours.