Thread: Real Life Shadow Calculations - anyone?

You can calculate the sun angle of any given time and date on any location here. Then it's just a matter of high school trigonometrie.

It's a lot easier to check it out in Google Sketchup. I've drawn the basic shape of your house (old and new) for you, all you need to do is play around with the shadow settings - time and date, and you can watch the shadows move.

The height above sea level doesn't make much of a difference, but the slight slope does. Haven't modeled this though.

And I sincerely hope your house looks better in real life than my model.

Frans


Sketchup file here: Tilt house.skp

Niiiice, thanks ... the angle of the roof will actually be close to the same, as I want to raise the walls as well, but that shouldn't really make much difference since the top will be at the same height.
My town wasn't on the list, but I picked one half an hour (30 km) north from here.
Malmoe
Optimum Tilt of Solar Panels by Month

Figures shown in degrees from vertical

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
18°	26°	34°	42°	50°	58°
Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
50°	42°	34°	26°	18°	10°

So I'm guessing these numbers of the tilt of the solar panel corresponds to the angle of the sun (ie the same angle)?
Also, the angle is when the sun is at its highest, right?
So now I "just" have to learn how to make/move the sun in sketchup (and measure angles in there)

I *think* you're right about the angles. You don't need the angles in Sketchup though. There's a slider for month and a slider for the time of day in the Shadows Settings (Window -> Shadow). Just set these to the required setting and use the Tape Measure Tool (T, or Tools -> Tape Measure) to measure where the shadow ends. Or just guess it a bit, there are enough reference points on your drawing.



You can actually put a picture from Google Maps under the house, but I obviously do not know your address, and Trelleborg was too large to search for a house with these precise specifications

I was going to say: SKETCHUP! But Fransie beat me to it and did all the work as well Thumbs up Fransie.

New files: Tilt house.zip

As described in private message.

thanks Fransie for making these, those are very cool

and here a rep-slam +15 for your help

Yep, way to go fransie. I was gonna say the same thing.

Just wanted to say that I showed the houses/shadows to my wife and she thought it was really cool too.. thanks again Fransie, so now when I get some time, I'll try to mess around a little more and add a hedge, a shed and some small trees