Newbie looking at solar install in Fremont, CA

[solardreamer]

For my part, you're welcome.

The tilt (angle of the array(s)) with the horizontal is pretty important. Not quite as crucial as azimuth, but important to get correct. If arrays are going to be mounted parallel to the roof they sit on, use the roof azimuth and slope. Also remember, you can split arrays - some panels south, some west, etc. just remember that not all string inverters can handle multiple orientations or strings of varying sizes. Read the help/info screens.

I did some research on tilt and it seems that optimal tilt changes throughout the year but I don't find it practical to manually adjust tilt. So, I plan to just set fixed tilt if my roof pitch is too flat. I plan to have most panels south facing but I have less south facing roof space so I may need to have more west facing panels. Regarding inverters, I was planning on micro-inverters. Would that make it easier to have panels facing different directions than string inverters you mentioned? Thanks.

[bcroe]

Regarding inverters, I was planning on micro-inverters. Would that make it
easier to have panels facing different directions than string inverters you mentioned? Thanks.

If you use strings, all the panels in each string should have the same orientation. No such restriction
with micro-inverters. Bruce Roe

[inetdog]

I did some research on tilt and it seems that optimal tilt changes throughout the year but I don't find it practical to manually adjust tilt. So, I plan to just set fixed tilt if my roof pitch is too flat. I plan to have most panels south facing but I have less south facing roof space so I may need to have more west facing panels. Regarding inverters, I was planning on micro-inverters. Would that make it easier to have panels facing different directions than string inverters you mentioned? Thanks.

Yes, and you do not need to have the same number of panels in each string.
West facing strings, depending on local weather and shading conditions, may be almost as good as South facing strings. And for Grid Tie they have the advantage of more production during peak rate hours. Although TOU pricing is going through some major changes that reduce the payback on even West facing panels.

[J.P.M.]

I did some research on tilt and it seems that optimal tilt changes throughout the year but I don't find it practical to manually adjust tilt. So, I plan to just set fixed tilt if my roof pitch is too flat. I plan to have most panels south facing but I have less south facing roof space so I may need to have more west facing panels. Regarding inverters, I was planning on micro-inverters. Would that make it easier to have panels facing different directions than string inverters you mentioned? Thanks.

Optimal tilt does change as the earth's declination changes. Decent 1st approx. for year round perf. for fixed tilt is to tilt to local latitude if facing south, a bit higher but not much, if a little off south, and higher tilt the farther off south you get. A few PVWatts runs will usually zero it in fairly well.