Almost everywhere you look, you’ll see a building with solar panels on its roof. But not every roof is suitable for panels.
Where homes are often fitted with a brick façade, many larger, taller and/or utility buildings have different cladding. Vertical solar panels can be mounted on those different types of cladding. It is also possible to install a solar panel as cladding, both in new construction and renovation. This reduces costs and investment by combining cladding and PV panels. In addition, vertical solar panels can be supplied in colour. In this way, the panels can be concealed in the existing façade in line with the parts where no PV panels are placed, or used as a unique statement.
A solar panel achieves the highest return when placed at an angle of 35 degrees. A solar panel can be hung at an angle on a façade using a scaffold, which is not an ideal solution from an aesthetic or cost point of view. Fully vertical solar panels have a slightly lower yield, but still provide a good return and are more widely distributed throughout the year. The yield of a vertical PV panel depends on orientation and size. The investment can be shared by using the vertical solar panels as cladding. Thus, a payback period of 11 years is quite possible, where a PV installation has an economic lifetime of 25 years. This gives a good return on investment for vertical PV panels as well.
Would you like more information about vertical mounting of standard panels or our custom Powerglaz solar panels? Contact us to see how the fully customisable Powerglaz panels fit into any façade design, subtly concealed or, on the contrary, aesthetically pronounced in the style of the environment or business.
FAQ – Frequently asked questions
Vertical solar panels, also known as façade solar panels, fit any building. Whereas the roof is often used for other facilities or is limited in load, except for the windows, the façade of a building is always available. Part of a building’s façade is always oriented towards the sun, which ensures a good yield. Thereby, solar panels can be used as cladding.
The façade of a building is part of the structure and strong enough to mount solar panels against it. The various methods of installing solar panels as façade mounting, using a scaffold, brackets or instead of the façade cladding, mean that there is a solution for every building
