Solar & battery
Solar Peak Sun Hours Calculator
Convert daily solar irradiance into peak sun hours, and see what it means for production.
Result
Peak sun hours are not daylight hours. They are the day's total solar energy expressed as hours at 1,000 W per square metre, so a long overcast day can be worth fewer peak sun hours than a short bright one. Use a figure for your own location and month rather than a national average. Seasonal factors here are broad and swing far more at high latitudes: a northern site can see winter production at a third of summer rather than 60%. Use measured data for your own location and tilt.
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About this calculator
Is one peak sun hour the same as an hour of daylight?
No. It is an hour at 1,000 W per square metre. A bright summer day might deliver six peak sun hours across fourteen hours of daylight.
Where do I find my figure?
National solar resource databases publish irradiance by location and month. Local installers will have the figure for your area and it is worth asking which month they sized on.
The formula
peak sun hours = daily irradiance in kWh per square metre x seasonal factor
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