Solar gate openers ( for example: MIGHTY MULE 502 ) are extremely popular for DIY gate installations. As more people are realizing the reliability of solar gates and ease of wireless gate opener installations we are finding that there is a common misconception about how solar panels collect power which we are going to address here.
Our number one issue we run into is improper positioning of the solar panel. It is misunderstood the type of light a solar panel must have. Ambient light does not create energy with a solar panel and leads to systems that have batteries that loose their charge. On a fully sunny day, the brightness of an open area is what misleads people’s perception of the sunlight that is being received by the gate opener’s solar panel. It could seem that a panel facing East, West or even North is getting direct sun light. This is the brightness and the way our eyes take in the light is misleading us. Take a look at this illustration of the sun shining on a ball and the position of the solar panel. The right side the panel is facing South, the panel is getting direct sunlight. The left hand picture the panel is facing East and the panel is not receiving direct sunlight. In real life the look is not so dramatic but the effects of the position of the earth in regard to the sun is exactly this dramatic.
Most of our customers are installing in the Northern Hemisphere. This means that earth is positioned so the sun is coming in at an angle from the south of the property. The solar panel should be positioned facing the south at an angle to compensate for the curvature of the earth. The angle can be calculated using this formula: (Your Latitude x 0.9) + 29 Degrees= # of degrees your panel should be angled towards true South from the horizontal position (laying flat pointing directly up). Search latitude and the address of your gate opener installation in Google.com to find your latitude.
Another issue that comes up is very light shading. Some customers have trees that cast faint shadows because of their distance. The belief is that because it is not a solid dark shadow there is sun light that is getting through and the gate opener solar panel will charge the battery. This is not the case, this will also lead to a discharged battery. The solar panel should be in the clear direct path of the sun light for the entire day.