Do Solar Panels Work In Cloud Cover

Solar panels still work when it is cloudy.

Do solar panels work in cloud cover.

Anyone who has gotten sunburned on a cloudy day knows that solar radiation penetrates clouds. Solar panels react to the visible light spectrum. The thicker the clouds the less power the system will produce. In the video below you can see the generation of one of our solar sites on a day with variable cloud cover.

But depending on the cloud cover and the quality of the solar panels efficiency can drop to anywhere from 10 to 25 percent of the energy output seen on a sunny day. The thing is when clouds cover the sun the solar system doesn t stop working producing power. The effects of clouds on a solar panel can be unexpectedly great. The denser the cloud cover then the less the energy generation.

As there are many different types of clouds. They don t produce as much electricity as they do on sunny days but they have been shown to produce 25 of what they produce on. Therefore although we conclude that solar panels don t require direct sunlight to produce electricity we can clearly state that the cloud cover will determine the amount of power generated. Incredibly your solar panels will put out their supreme amount of peak power during cloudy weather.

Different solar panels are able to cope with cloudy conditions better than others. Some kinds of panels are better at receiving diffuse light. Depending on the type of cloud cover you can expect your solar panels to produce anywhere between 50 to 10 as much electricity in comparison to a sunny day. Yes solar panels work on cloudy days.

However in cloudy days the amount of power the solar panels produce will decrease depending on how dense the cloud cover is. Yes just not quite as well on a cloudy day typical solar panels can produce 10 25 of their rated capacity. It just reduces the output of energy. If there is sufficient light to cast a shadow in spite of the clouds your solar panels need to operate at about half of their complete capacity.

Solar panels generate the most electricity on clear days with abundant sunshine not surprisingly. This means if it s light enough to see there s enough light for solar panels to start generating electricity. But do solar panels work in cloudy weather. Determining the impact overcast conditions have on the output of solar panels is difficult.

But the stronger the sunlight the better. However solar output typically decreases significantly in cloudy conditions. Solar panels do produce electricity in cloudy weather. Even though clouds may cover the sky and block the sun directly a solar panel will continue to function as long as shadows are able to be formed outside.

Yet when the sun shines through the clouds solar panels still get direct sunlight plus light reflected from the clouds. As the sun moves into a hole between the clouds your photovoltaic panels. The exact amount will vary depending on the density of the clouds and may also vary by the type of solar panel. If you haven t read my article on how to make sense of solar panel specifications go ahead and do that.