Fall seems to have come and gone pretty quickly as the Midwest recently experienced some snowstorms. How does that impact your solar array’s production? Obviously, solar does best during the summer, because of the earth’s tilt and longer days. Surprisingly, spring and fall create really great conditions for solar. A cold sunny day is actually an ideal condition for your array. A solar panel can produce more power on a cold day than a warm one because there is less resistance for the electrons. More energy can flow through the components instead of getting slowed down by the air surrounding the array.
However, the fall, spring, and winter is not completely full of cold sunny days. Solar arrays will still produce on cloudy days, but the production will be less than a sunny day. As far snow goes, it can have a few negative effects. When a heavy snow covers the panels, energy production can severely decrease. Yet, if your panels are angled, it does not take long for the snow to slip off, especially when the sun starts to hit a panel and heats it up. Once the snow slides off, your panels will produce as normal. Snow can also increase production in some cases, because the snow can reflect the sun. If the correct angles exist, then your solar array can pick up energy being reflected by the snow. It will not be much energy, but every little bit helps.
So regardless of the season, your solar panels can produce power during all times of the year. So don’t wait until summer to build your solar array, there is plenty of sun to get in the winter. StraightUp Solar can design a system for you and project annual production that accounts for the change in season. Get your free site assessment today!
