A precision solar energy planning and expectation management tool for homeowners and solar installers. Developed by Zenthor Systems Limited.
Solar panels are rated under carefully controlled laboratory conditions known as Standard Test Conditions (STC). In these tests the panels are perfectly aligned to the Sun and receive a precisely defined level of solar energy.
In the real world, solar panels rarely experience these conditions.
The Sun moves across the sky throughout the day and changes position throughout the year. Latitude, panel orientation, panel tilt and seasonal effects all influence the amount of solar energy available to your installation.
Solar Potential Explorer calculates the maximum solar energy that was physically available to your installation on a perfect day.
A perfect day assumes:
Perfect days are uncommon, but they provide an extremely useful benchmark.
When a clear sunny day occurs, you can compare your actual generation against the SPE calculation and see how closely your system approached its theoretical maximum.
This allows losses caused by shading, dirt, sub-optimal orientation or other installation factors to be identified.
If your panels have not yet been installed, SPE can identify the orientation and tilt angle that maximise solar potential for your latitude.
Installation decisions made once may influence generation for decades. SPE helps ensure those decisions are based on the geometry of the Sun at your location rather than trial and error.
Many solar tools estimate generation.
Solar Potential Explorer establishes the upper limit of what is possible and helps explain the difference between theoretical performance and real-world results.
Any clear sky moment tells the story.
When your panels are in full sun with no shading:
Example: SPE shows 78% and your panels are rated 1000W. Your inverter reads 706W — that's 70.6%. The 7.4% gap represents your system losses.
The gap between theory and reality is your system's loss figure — instantly, without waiting for ideal conditions that may never come.
Solar Potential Explorer was developed by a solar panel owner and validated against real generation data from an EcoFlow Powerstream installation.
Consistently within 8% of theoretical maximum, with the difference explained entirely by known system losses.
Solar Potential Explorer will be available shortly on the Apple App Store and Google Play.