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Solar panels - no clue at all

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  • ASA201 said:
    @Reed_Richards @Heedtheadvice 19kWh (presumably) over a period of 28 days (14/10 - 12739 reading > 11/11 - 12758 reading), with panels that have net capacity of 2.0 (estimated annual generation on install says 1768kW), facing due west, or marginally south west, in the central area of “Falkirk”

    @Martyn1981 thanks - I'll take a read at start and end of December and see what it shows. 


    Just for ball park comparison,
    I am under 100miles from you as the crow flies,
    peak power of panels about twice yours
    Due south facing.
    For that same period generation was 103 units so for half generation panels expect maybe 50 units.
    Factor in your more Westerly direction ( guess here...) two thirds gives a ball park figure of 34 units.
    Approx what you are recording
     ...we cannot take into account the weather differences etc but for most of us it has been particularly poor with grey skies dominating especially for that period you have measured. You could have just hit unlucky.
  • ASA201
    ASA201 Posts: 37 Forumite
    10 Posts First Anniversary Name Dropper
    @paul991 reading from the inverter is near identical to that from the generation meter inside.   I’m not sure what you mean from each string though? 

    @Heedtheadvice thanks that’s quite helpful.  I guess I’m just trying to ascertain could there be a fault that needs looking into on my setup.  
  • chris_n
    chris_n Posts: 635 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper
    Every year there are threads similar to this from people who have just acquired solar systems and think their production is terrible. Bear in mind that we are @20 days from the shortest day and winter hasn't even started yet. What this means is by the time we get to the middle of actual winter the days are already much longer than they are now and the weather in UK has been very gloomy (often happens in late Autumn).
    For instance the difference between sunrise and sunset in my UK location is 7.37 minutes, at the beginning of February it is over an hour longer, it is also 5⁰ higher.  Give it another month and it is another 10⁰ higher. Wait till May then you can see how generation is.
    Living the dream in the Austrian Alps.
  • jimjames
    jimjames Posts: 18,675 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    ASA201 said:
    @Heedtheadvice thanks that’s quite helpful.  I guess I’m just trying to ascertain could there be a fault that needs looking into on my setup.  
    Worth doing those kind of checks. Shading could reduce as could any debris or moss etc on the panels which would have the same impact. Generally panels don't need any maintenance but I've seen a few recently that were very dirty and that's not going to help get the best output.
    Remember the saying: if it looks too good to be true it almost certainly is.
  • Martyn1981
    Martyn1981 Posts: 15,384 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    ASA201 said:
    @Martyn1981 reading taken today of 12769 - will see what it says in a months time.   

    I don’t think it’s looking particularly great though.   When we moved in on 14/10 the read was 12739 so this would mean in the last 6ish weeks it’s only generated 30…. 

    Appreciate the comments around October and November not being great but isn’t this ridiculously low? 
    Hiya. Yes it does sound a bit low, but I just had my worst November (or any month) since 2011, by an absolute mile. So given you have other things against you (far north, and west facing), it's really too hard to tell at this time of year. Especially as shading will be at its worst, with the ever lower sun angle.

    I think PVGIS suggested about 15kWh for Dec, so if it's more normal, that may be a guide for you. But Nov to Feb (in my opinion) seem to vary the most, so it's hard to judge. If and when folk on here start to report having more normal months, especially Apr onwards, then that may allow you to get a better comparison.

    Good news though, 21st Dec is the winter solstice, so it all starts to get better from there .... hopefully.
    Mart. Cardiff. 8.72 kWp PV systems (2.12 SSW 4.6 ESE & 2.0 WNW). 20kWh battery storage. Two A2A units for cleaner heating. Two BEV's for cleaner driving.

    For general PV advice please see the PV FAQ thread on the Green & Ethical Board.
  • Martyn1981
    Martyn1981 Posts: 15,384 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Apologies, missed @Heedtheadvice response completely. That really answers things greatly.

    Just went back to PVGIS, popped another random pin in Falkirk, and compared 2kWp south (0 azimuth) to WNW (+80 azimuth), and got 69kWh v's 36kWh (but that's for an average guesstimation, this was an horrific Nov). So a nearly 50% reduction.

    So it's important to note that being off south has an impact on annual generation - again based on that pin for 2kWp of PV, I get 1,770kWh for south, and 1,472kWh for WNW. A significant difference of -17%, but the vast majority of losses for E, W or E/W arrays, compared to S facing, are squashed into the poorer months, when the sun sees the panels less and less. In winter the sun rises in the SE and sets in the SW, shining very little on E or W panels. That's why I installed a ground mount this year, with south facing panels at a 60d pitch, to get me some winter generation.
    Mart. Cardiff. 8.72 kWp PV systems (2.12 SSW 4.6 ESE & 2.0 WNW). 20kWh battery storage. Two A2A units for cleaner heating. Two BEV's for cleaner driving.

    For general PV advice please see the PV FAQ thread on the Green & Ethical Board.
  • Exiled_Tyke
    Exiled_Tyke Posts: 1,348 Forumite
    Ninth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    ASA201 said:
    @Martyn1981 reading taken today of 12769 - will see what it says in a months time.   

    I don’t think it’s looking particularly great though.   When we moved in on 14/10 the read was 12739 so this would mean in the last 6ish weeks it’s only generated 30…. 

    Appreciate the comments around October and November not being great but isn’t this ridiculously low? 
    Hiya. Yes it does sound a bit low, but I just had my worst November (or any month) since 2011, by an absolute mile. So given you have other things against you (far north, and west facing), it's really too hard to tell at this time of year. Especially as shading will be at its worst, with the ever lower sun angle.

    I think PVGIS suggested about 15kWh for Dec, so if it's more normal, that may be a guide for you. But Nov to Feb (in my opinion) seem to vary the most, so it's hard to judge. If and when folk on here start to report having more normal months, especially Apr onwards, then that may allow you to get a better comparison.

    Good news though, 21st Dec is the winter solstice, so it all starts to get better from there .... hopefully.


    So that got me thinking and when I checked this November too was my worst ever (the green bar on the right of the Nov graph) but not by much.   I also thought it would be helpful to show Dec to manage expectations.  I'd guess this averages around just over half of the November production. 
    Install 28th Nov 15, 3.3kW, (11x300LG), SolarEdge, SW. W Yorks.
    Install 2: Sept 19, 600W SSE
    Solax 6.3kWh battery
  • ASA201
    ASA201 Posts: 37 Forumite
    10 Posts First Anniversary Name Dropper
    Thanks everyone  :)
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