How to Calculate Solar Panel Efficiency

Solar panels, although initially expensive, are becoming a cost-saving option for those wishing to reduce their energy bills and do their part for the environment.

One increasingly popular green-friendly feature that homeowners have been acquiring over the past several years is the addition of solar panels to generate home electricity. Adding a series of solar panels to your roof or backyard requires an upfront investment, but in the long run, it could save you a lot of money and help the environment. To make sure that this investment would be worthwhile for you, you can calculate your solar panel efficiency.

Things You'll Need

• Meter measuring stick

Instructions

1. Calculate your solar panel area. Solar panels work by soaking up the sun's energy and converting it into electricity. The overall area of your solar panels will determine the amount of usable electricity you can create from the sun's energy. To calculate the area of your solar panels, use a meter stick to measure the length and width of the area where you wish to put your solar panels. Multiply your length measurement by your width measurement. This will give you the solar panel area in meters.

2. Use the Average Daily Solar Radiation Per Month chart put together by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to find your kilowatt per hour estimate. Use the map key to find out the daily kilowatt per hour estimate for your area. This number represents the amount of kilowatt hours you can expect to produce per squared meter each day, based on monthly averages.

3. Multiple your daily kilowatt per hour estimate with the solar panel area calculated in step one. This number is the amount of kilowatt hours you can expect to receive from your solar panels on a daily basis.

4. Compare the estimated daily kilowatt hours created by your solar panels with your daily kilowatt hours used. Take a look at a recent energy bill to see how many kilowatt hours you are using on average daily. Compare that number to the amount of kilowatt hours a day your solar panels would create. If you are creating a majority of your kilowatt hours with your solar panels, they are working efficiently. If you would still be purchasing a majority of your energy from your energy company, then the estimated area of solar panels is not that efficient for your energy needs.

References

• Solar Estimate: How To Calculate Solar and Wind Energy Power
• Solar Estimate: Average Daily Solar Radiation Per Month