waiting for sun

So far this summer the weather here in southern Ontario Canada has been pretty disappointing, at least from a solar point of view. Here is the forecast for this week for example (click to enlarge). Except for a few beautiful sunny days, temperatures for the last few weeks have been below seasonable norms and the sun has not been seen for days at a time.

It will be next week sometime before we see the sun again here.

When you are considering building your solar heating or photo voltaic system, it may be easy to imagine the free solar energy you would reap on a bright sunny day. However the reality averaged over the season or year may be quite different.

You can look at existing sources on the web to see what the expected solar "insolation" is for your area. The reality here in southern Ontario is that the sun shines in a clear sky only about half the time. This is from my observation but not very scientific.

Hopefully where you are has great solar potential.

My plan manual is nearing completion. I may be about two weeks away from having it available.