However this is a rough estimate as space can also be influenced by the efficiency of the panels and technology.
Area needed for solar panels.
A if your target peak power is 2 28 kwp and you decide to use monocrystalline solar modules the area you need is.
Total area needed installed solar power in kwp x area needed for 1 kwp.
Here s how you calculate the area required.
Plugging these number in the above equation we get.
In other terms we can say that for each 1 kw of solar panels you need 100 sqft of an area on average.
The saharan desert is 9 064 958 square kilometers or 18 times the total required area to fuel the world.
This is due to most pv panels are installed fixed and do not track the sun.
Compare it to the saharan desert.
Thus a 1 mw solar power plant with crystalline panels about 18 efficiency will require about 4 acres while the same plant with thin film technology 12 efficiency will require about 6 acres.
As a thumb rule a 10 m2 area is required for a 1 kw capacity solar system.
We know the required total output power is 1000 watts 10 panels x 100 watts the solar irradiance for a surface perpendicular to the sun s rays at sea level on a clear day is about 1000 watt m 2 and the conversion efficiency is 18.
For example a panel which is 996mm wide and 1680mm long takes up 1 68 x 0 996 1 67 sqm.
B in case you prefer to use polycrystalline solar modules the area you need is.
By another measure the unpopulated area of the sahara desert is over 9 million km which if covered with solar panels would provide 630 terawatts total power.
1000 watts total area x 1000 watts m 2 x 0 18.
Size of the system in watts e g.
5kw 5 000 watts size of the solar panel in watts number of panels required work out how many square meters each panel takes up.
2 28 kwp x 7 m 2 15 96 m 2 or 2 28 kwp x 75 ft 2 171 ft 2.
The average residential solar installation in the us is about 20 solar panels which at 15 square feet each adds up to 300 square feet for the entire solar array a fancy word for the group of solar panels.
The simple thumb rule is high efficiency solar panels will require less area for the same mw capacity than lower efficiency panels.