Why are parking lots a neglected source of energy?

[mschmit]

@Watty

A couple of complications with putting solar panels in a parking lot compared to a field.

You have some good points, but maybe many aren’t that big of a deal. I’ve responded to a few.

@Watty

1. The isles of the parking lot might not be orientated at the best angle for sunlight.

Not a big deal. Pointing to the east or west only loses 10-15% over a year in many locations.
But since so many panels are facing south there tends to be too much for some utilities so facing some panels east or west can actually be more valuable for the grid some places at some times. I’ve seen a large community college parking lot that has a mix of east, south and west.
Finally, many lots could be re-striped if desired.

@Watty

4. Safety is more of an issue in a parking lot. A support pole would need to be able to handle a car hitting it and if solar panels fall due to weather or damage it may damage expensive cars or hurt people.

We already have lots of parking lots with street light poles. I don’t see a lot of them knocked over. Hint: they put a concrete base around them. To support the panels they put in large steel I-beams. We build stuff all the time to handle snow weight, even large flat roofs over big box stores so why would good engineering not work for solar panels?

@Watty

5. In a parking lot you would need to have lighting under the solar panels for at night for safety.

Big lots already have street lights,

@Watty

6. Vandalism and theft are more of a risk in a parking lot. I would think it would be pretty tempting for people to load a couple of thousand dollars worth of solar panels into a pickup and drive off.

Insurance handles this.

Mike

[Leap1]

Watty,

Nicely said. the law can have caveats and can insist on new construction meeting these needs.

[GDavenport]

Placing solar panels anywhere is trivial from an engineering standpoint. No concerns that have been brought up have any significance to installation. The issue is purely economics.

Taller structures (free standing) for solar panels must be more expensive. more materials, more labor to install.

Directional drilling is exceptionally good at working under pavement. It is also 10x more expensive than open ditches. Economics.

Solar panels and weight are not usually a concern. Wind loads are not trivial economically, but are easy to plan for in engineering design. (getting your civil PE to sign off on sufficient -but not conservative- designs is not easy, though!)

Economics, Economics, Economics. After that. Also Economics.