I didn't know solar panel murals were a thing. This is a w e s o m e!
this post was submitted on 21 Nov 2025
85 points (95.7% liked)
Solarpunk
7720 readers
3 users here now
The space to discuss Solarpunk itself and Solarpunk related stuff that doesn't fit elsewhere.
Join our chat: Movim or XMPP client.
founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
why is this not everywhere, much better use of space instead of ads plastered in the side of a building.
Because that mural wastes well over 100 households worth of CO2 emission prevention.
Solar panels are black because that means everything is absorbed. The bright colors mean much of the sunlight is reflected, decreasing the efficiency of the solar panel beneath it. Eyeballing the mural, I would guess the solar panels are about 65% as effective. The solar panels are also placed vertically, though thankfully they are perfectly south-facing, so at that latitude you can expect another multiplicative 30% decrease in efficiency. Looking on Streetview, it also appears that the eastern side of the building is offset northward, meaning it will be in the shade in the evening, so we can drop another 10% or so. Multiply all together and we get 40% efficiency compared to well-placed solar panels.
So Edmonton will need around 2.5 as many solar panels as it otherwise would have needed. This mural is 3200 square meters of panels, meaning a waste of around 1920 square meters of panel materials. According to this source, that amounts to about 3 million lost kWh per year, or about 1200 tonnes of CO2 per year assuming they are using coal to fill the shortfall, or around 100 times the per capita CO2 emissions of Canada (which is more than 100 times household emissions because industry also exists).
The fact that Guinness World Records were involved proves that it's greenwashing. They are an advertising company whose service is to make up awards that their clients qualify for to get them attention. Hiring them costs a decent chunk of pocket change.
You know they're going to start making ads out of these now.
ugh 😩
Wait you can decorate them? Holy shit this changes everything
It somewhat decreases the efficiency... basically like dirty panels.
Plus Danielle Smith likes to throw rocks at them with Pierre.
Then they jump into a lifted dodge with truck nuts and do a burnout on the lawn
Ohhh, hmmm. What if it’s different shades of dark grey? That way it could look artistic and still absorb lots of light.
Looking at the stats on this one, try like halves x(
They aren't painted on. They are manufactured to look like this permanently. Each panel generates between 7-18W sq ft depending on the color of the panel.
Here is a brochure that outlines the product: Mitrex Facade
The project has 34,500 square feet of coloured photovoltaic panels, including a multicolored mosaic on other sides of the building.
The Mitrex panels replace conventional siding and can generate 267 kilowatts of electricity while providing weather protection with an aluminum honeycomb core and continuous insulation.
The retrofit will save $80,000/yr after five years, with a return on investment estimated after four years compared to traditional siding.
This bothered me more than it probably should have lol, big advocate of form following function and can't help thinking of all the time and resources that went into making that poor array not work as well :(