Solar panels are a great investment but! So not sure what part of the US you guys are located in but here in Sunny San Diego there’s a lot of geographical factors that come into play when it comes to panels getting dirty and up to 40% energy production loss. I own a solar panel cleaning business and this service is definitely a must 1-2 times a year...again depending on the geographical location. We get the least amount of rain fall in SoCal than anywhere else in the country.
@@ccexe0😂 are you sure about that? My clients call me every 3months to ask if I should maybe come clean their panels. If it really isn't necessary then that is where being a decent human being comes into play and not rob people from their money. But in some places it really is necessary to do this 1 to 3 times a year.
Lots of comments about cleanings and inspections here, let me clarify a little. These guys are saying if everything works as designed there is no required maintenance like an annual tune up on an HVAC system or something. The production estimates provided upfront include losses for soiling (dust, pollen, snow, bird crap) and warranties will cover any failures you should come across. Will you get more out of your system if you clean it? Yes. How much depends on your region and specific location. East coast rains wash panels pretty clean from loose dust, though there can still be build up over time. A coastal area, or array by a pond could see lots of bird soiling. A low tilt array will not shed dirt as easily, and if flat, rain basically does nothing to wash them. If next to a highway or agriculture you get way more dust. West coast sites basically get no rain May-September, so by August you're losing a good few % off of your peak generation months. If something else blocks sunlight from hitting the panels, obviously you're going to lose out. someone plant bamboo in front of your array? problems. wet leaves stuck to them? no good. Trees grew 10' taller in 5 years? yeah, more shade = less sun. Satellite dish needed to go RIGHT THERE? Well... Inspections are great as a preventative step to catch something before it becomes a big issue, but if it was good workmanship from the get go, should not find anything concerning. Typical maintenance items on annual inspections is just cleaning vent fans on inverters if present, and testing everything to make sure voltages and currents are up to snuff. Visual inspection to make sure it is all looking good, wire management, connection tightness, no visible water or thermal concerns. Thermal cams can catch things getting too hot. but if it is still working and producing what was expected, chances are nothing concerning will be found. There are infinite things that COULD go wrong, but chances are pretty good that a warranty will cover it. Don't walk on them, and don't install facing a baseball field. Bullets are also detrimental to the life of a solar panel, speaking from experience. TLDR, if production is good, you're good. If whole system is low, clean it. If part of the system is low or something looks amiss, call whoever covers the warranty to fix it.
I actually don’t agree with this video. It is proven to be beneficial to clean panels and most companies mention in their T&C’s that maintenance regarding cleaning is a must or it can void the warranty..
Blake, there are scenarios where cleaning panels is required or production could be impacted. However, in our part of the country, there are few situations that standard rain can't resolve - at least on the residential end. If you're in an agricultural setting or in an area with significant dirt/dust, then you might want to consider cleaning your panels.
Hello guys thanks for the information appreciate that very much. My question is corrosion on the frame and lines? I Live in a warn hot Island with heavy sea blast round the coast side. Any advice you may have for these types of issues ?
Depending how they were installed is the issue. There is alot of bad work from shady installers. Wire management and inspections must be done yearly to avoid fire issues, especially on buildings. Field arrays like this do not require as much maintenance as this video says, buy inspection is important.
Installation quality is a big part of it but not the only cause. Issues with inverters and other technology on the system can fail over time. The good news is most of the equipment comes with lengthy warranties.
Dream on bros! We've spent hundreds of hours rinsing our panels. It's a huge job and very difficult, worse then cleaning windows! Nobody will do that for free!
Most solar panels will be fine without being cleaned in the areas where we work. Rain will wash off most common dirt and pollen. There are some systems that will need to be cleaned but the average homeowner won't need to worry about it.
These are the videos that show up at the tip of searchs when there regional and not like based I'm sorry but this is irrelevant to my search but it's in the tip 5 when I specifically wanted a breakdown to services that are don't to solar panels and it's annoying not your guys fault it's RUclips.
Hi Stephen, what exactly are you looking for? Perhaps this blog post will help as it provides more detail than the video. bit.ly/3vw9YNl The maintenance talked about in both the video and blog will be similar no matter where you live.
Solar panels are a great investment but! So not sure what part of the US you guys are located in but here in Sunny San Diego there’s a lot of geographical factors that come into play when it comes to panels getting dirty and up to 40% energy production loss. I own a solar panel cleaning business and this service is definitely a must 1-2 times a year...again depending on the geographical location. We get the least amount of rain fall in SoCal than anywhere else in the country.
We're located on the east coast. Our climate is favorable for rinsing off most dust, pollen, etc.
1-2 cleaning per year? You guys want all the money it earned? Too greedy. Buddy.
@@ccexe0😂 are you sure about that? My clients call me every 3months to ask if I should maybe come clean their panels. If it really isn't necessary then that is where being a decent human being comes into play and not rob people from their money. But in some places it really is necessary to do this 1 to 3 times a year.
@@ccexe0
Lots of comments about cleanings and inspections here, let me clarify a little. These guys are saying if everything works as designed there is no required maintenance like an annual tune up on an HVAC system or something. The production estimates provided upfront include losses for soiling (dust, pollen, snow, bird crap) and warranties will cover any failures you should come across.
Will you get more out of your system if you clean it? Yes. How much depends on your region and specific location. East coast rains wash panels pretty clean from loose dust, though there can still be build up over time. A coastal area, or array by a pond could see lots of bird soiling. A low tilt array will not shed dirt as easily, and if flat, rain basically does nothing to wash them. If next to a highway or agriculture you get way more dust. West coast sites basically get no rain May-September, so by August you're losing a good few % off of your peak generation months.
If something else blocks sunlight from hitting the panels, obviously you're going to lose out. someone plant bamboo in front of your array? problems. wet leaves stuck to them? no good. Trees grew 10' taller in 5 years? yeah, more shade = less sun. Satellite dish needed to go RIGHT THERE? Well...
Inspections are great as a preventative step to catch something before it becomes a big issue, but if it was good workmanship from the get go, should not find anything concerning. Typical maintenance items on annual inspections is just cleaning vent fans on inverters if present, and testing everything to make sure voltages and currents are up to snuff. Visual inspection to make sure it is all looking good, wire management, connection tightness, no visible water or thermal concerns. Thermal cams can catch things getting too hot. but if it is still working and producing what was expected, chances are nothing concerning will be found.
There are infinite things that COULD go wrong, but chances are pretty good that a warranty will cover it. Don't walk on them, and don't install facing a baseball field. Bullets are also detrimental to the life of a solar panel, speaking from experience.
TLDR, if production is good, you're good. If whole system is low, clean it. If part of the system is low or something looks amiss, call whoever covers the warranty to fix it.
Bullets... Sounds like there could be a good story here?! Thanks for the comment. Lots of truth to what you shared.
I actually don’t agree with this video. It is proven to be beneficial to clean panels and most companies mention in their T&C’s that maintenance regarding cleaning is a must or it can void the warranty..
Blake, there are scenarios where cleaning panels is required or production could be impacted. However, in our part of the country, there are few situations that standard rain can't resolve - at least on the residential end. If you're in an agricultural setting or in an area with significant dirt/dust, then you might want to consider cleaning your panels.
@@thesolarenergychannel why now there a job like solar panel cleaner?
Hello guys thanks for the information appreciate that very much. My question is corrosion on the frame and lines? I Live in a warn hot Island with heavy sea blast round the coast side. Any advice you may have for these types of issues ?
Depending how they were installed is the issue. There is alot of bad work from shady installers. Wire management and inspections must be done yearly to avoid fire issues, especially on buildings. Field arrays like this do not require as much maintenance as this video says, buy inspection is important.
Installation quality is a big part of it but not the only cause. Issues with inverters and other technology on the system can fail over time. The good news is most of the equipment comes with lengthy warranties.
Dream on bros! We've spent hundreds of hours rinsing our panels. It's a huge job and very difficult, worse then cleaning windows! Nobody will do that for free!
Most solar panels will be fine without being cleaned in the areas where we work. Rain will wash off most common dirt and pollen. There are some systems that will need to be cleaned but the average homeowner won't need to worry about it.
These are the videos that show up at the tip of searchs when there regional and not like based I'm sorry but this is irrelevant to my search but it's in the tip 5 when I specifically wanted a breakdown to services that are don't to solar panels and it's annoying not your guys fault it's RUclips.
Hi Stephen, what exactly are you looking for? Perhaps this blog post will help as it provides more detail than the video. bit.ly/3vw9YNl The maintenance talked about in both the video and blog will be similar no matter where you live.