In spite of Britain having a reputation for dull and gloomy weather, there is actually a sufficient amount of sunlight in the UK to power solar panels.
In fact our island collects the same quantity of sunlight or ‘solar radiation’ as parts of Spain and France, these are countries with a seemingly more Mediterranean climate.
It has been proven over the last couple of decades that solar panels do work in the UK. Solar panels for household use is somewhat new, however, particular industries have been using them with triumph for several years now.
One of the many-sided myths encircling solar energy is that panels can only be installed to fully south-facing roofs, as a matter of fact this is not actually true!
Undoubtedly, to get the most excellent performance from solar panels, they should preferably be located on a roof that faces due south. Nevertheless, if your roof faces south east or south west, the panels will still operate excellently.
Actually, panels installed to an east or west facing roof will still produce around 80 percent of the energy that is carried out in ideal conditions.
For the best outcome (whichever way your roof faces) the panels should be fitted at an angle of between 30 and 45 degrees from the ground. On flat roofs, you can use a stand or frame to create the required angle.
However your installation is assembled, solar panels in Britain can be foreseen to supply up to 100 percent of your hot water requirements in the summer time and about 40 percent in winter.
It is fair to say Britain does tend to get snowy winters. With that said, solar panels should be fitted at an angle of around 30 percent to increase performance, the reason being that light snow will generally just slip off the panels instantly. There can occasionally be plenty of residue heat in the solar panel to firmly melt the snow away.
If you live in a location where it is prone to snow, do not worry! You can purchase a solution that makes the panel surface slippier and believe it or not, snow lying around can improve the functionality of your panels by reflecting the suns photons back up from the ground.
