Solar power generation on commercial housing balconies

How much electricity does a balcony solar system generate?

How much electricity a balcony PV system can generate depends on its size. Normally, a small balcony solar system with an output of 200 to 600 watts can generate up to 500 kWh of electricity per year. To put this into perspective: In a 2‑person household, the average annual consumption is around 2,500 kWh.

Does a balcony have a higher solar energy potential than a side balcony?

The annual solar energy potentials for FIPV applications were almost equal for both side and staggered balcony arrangements (for large and medium balcony series, side balcony arrangements would lead to slightly lower annual solar energy potential, but also would use smaller areas of PVs.

Are side balconies a good choice for interior daylight & solar energy harvest?

The results showed that side balconies arrangement could provide the best performance in interior daylight and solar energy harvest aspects, and FIPV designs with partial balcony railing areas in complementary hues were the most aesthetically preferred type.

Do side balconies increase energy harvest efficiencies?

Fig. 21 demonstrated that the FIPV applications of high-rises with side balconies have higher efficiencies in energy harvest than the FIPV applications of high-rises with staggered balconies, especially for large balcony series. This indicated fewer PV materials were needed for apartments with side balcony arrangements.

Do balcony railings have high solar potential?

Two specific buildings in Switzerland were taken as urban renewal case studies, the balcony railings of one case building were found to present as high solar potentials on the roofs and were designed with integrated grey-coloured PVs.

How much solar energy can a residential high-rise generate?

In addition, the solar potential simulations also showed that for 11-floor residential high-rises with side balconies, the total annual solar energy potentials on facades were 3.3–4.8 times of the solar potential on roof areas (with 950 kWh/m 2 year for solar radiation on roof area).