People planning to buy solar panels should understand the term “Sun Number Score” or "Sun Number Rating" developed through a partnership with Zillow with the help of the U.S. Department of Energy's SunShot Grant to promote renewable energy. Finding the solar score of your home is essential in determining whether your home is perfect for solar energy system installation. Keep on reading to learn what a sun number is and how to calculate it for your home.
What is a Sun Number?
It is a number between 0 and 100
that shows a home’s solar potential and how appropriate it is for rooftop solar
and on ground solar services. The
higher the sun number score is, the better your home is suited for solar panel installation
and solar inverter. Using this score, you can easily understand your home’s
ability for producing solar energy without learning all the unwanted solar industry
terminologies or jargon.
What is a Good Sun Number?
Achieving a score of 100 sun
number is not possible for all homes. It is a very rare case. A score of 70 or
higher is considered well for a home also it can assure excellent financial
savings in the long term. The number above 70 indicates that solar is a
worthwhile investment for your building. Keeping into account the high
installation costs of a solar system, any financial savings will boost the
system’s ROI.
What Factors Affect the Sun Number Score?
The sun number score is the
combination of the following factors –
1. Building score
The building solar score makes up
for the majority of the complete sun number score. It has a maximum score of 80
points while a score less than 50 is not considered fine. The residential
building is analyzed based on the roof orientation, roof shading, roof size,
and roof pitch.
2. Local climate score
Determining the regional climate
score is essential no matter whether you’re interested in solar street light installation, rooftop panels, or other solar
systems. The amount of sunlight that hits the surface of the solar system directly
affects the amount of solar energy that a system generates. Seasonal weather
patterns and climatic conditions play a significant role.
For example, if you live in regions
with tall trees and large buildings, the sun number score would be lower. To
calculate the regional climate score of your local region, consider the solar
irradiance data from NREL, a short of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory
website.
3. Solar cost score
It is the smallest contributor that
takes into account the cost of solar installation in your local region. The
maximum solar cost score of 4 means low solar installation costs in your area.
4. Electricity rates score
The maximum electricity rate
score of 8 means the higher sun number of your home’s solar investment. A lower
sun number means low electricity rates and a higher sun number means higher
average electric rates.
So, find your home’s sun number
score to find the suitability of a solar investment.
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