How To Clean Your Solar Panels
Vložit
- čas přidán 4. 09. 2020
- Cleaning Your Solar System
Congratulations on going solar! Whether your installation occurred last week or many years ago, it is important to know how to keep the panels clean to maximize production and cost savings. While rain is helpful in keeping the system clean, it is recommended that you clean the array(s) every few years. It is especially important if you live in an area with a lot of dust, pollen, birds, leaves, pine needles, or if there has been a recent fire. Moreover, you can check your system’s production to determine whether it is time to clean the panels.
Consider contacting the manufacturer or the installer for specific cleaning instructions. Please keep in mind that panels can be very hot during the middle of the day so cleaning in the morning or evening is suggested.
Professional Cleaning
The best and most convenient way to clean your system is to hire a professional cleaning service. As solar has grown around the world, so have auxiliary services like panel washing companies. There are a few quality companies servicing the Central Coast that you can find with a simple Google search. The cost is typically $100-$200 depending on the specifics of your system like roof pitch and number of arrays.
Do It Yourself
If you feel comfortable getting on your roof, you can clean the system yourself. A hose and a non-abrasive rag will suffice. Using distilled or deionized water is best but municipal water works fine. Using soap isn’t recommended as it can leave a film or residue that not only shades panels, but it can also encourage dirt to stick and build up faster. The most important thing is to not scratch the glass! Another critical note is that spraying cold water on hot glass can lead to cracking so make sure to clean in the morning or in the evening when temperatures are lower. - Věda a technologie
Beautiful thank you and god bless those young supple people who will climb up on the roof to do that job.
Life savers!
*Super compact and easy to carry and travel with accessories for the electric **Generater.Systems** .I was worried this was going to be bulky or hard to use.Hooks up easy and charges quickly*
Thank you for sharing your experience!
i'm 72 and do climb on my roof I am very careful. This video was most helpful.
Great video, thanks!
Good and helpful job thanx 4 awareness.
So is cleaning the panels with a pressure washer on soft pressure a no no? Some times the wfp brush is not enough to get of the dirt and droppings.
Scraping the panels is likely going to remove the Anti Reflective Coating, which is also a sealer against water ingress. These panels are probably damaged now.
Exactly. You should not use a scraper at all.
I noticed the same thing and was checking the comments to see if anyone else noticed. Sure enough, someone caught that too. I noticed he is also using straight tap water. at 1:29 he has the clients hose disconnected and his green hose hooked up to the front spicket.
i will be starting this business soon and from my research, Deionized water is the best water to go with cleaning solar panels@@ryanbeach1
@@ryanbeach1 Why would that be bad? Could it be worse than rain and hail?
@@CBlarghI guess tap water has sediments and minerals and if it’s left to air dry, those things will remain on the panel and form water spots, like on cars if you wash it with a hose and don’t dry it properly
Wash your solar panels like you would washing your car. Use a soft cloth that comes on a wand. Don't use a scaper. Mild diluted soap in bucket. Shut power off to the system. We have pollen that sticks to everything.
In most cases, pollen can be washed off with mild rain. But in the event that you need to wash your panels, it's suggested to only use a soft stream of water. Soaps and other solvents can damage the panels and void the warranty. czcams.com/video/ee59CGo7ahY/video.html
@@thesolarenergychannel We get rain storms that pours very hard. Doesn't remove all of the pollen. The panels have to be cleaned at least once a year.
I was told in another video not to use soap…🤷🏿♂️🤷🏿♂️
My works too. Used Avasva handbooks and build it with no problems.
Upgrade the scrapper for an extendable squeegee mop, so you won’t be so close to the edge.
Do you use regular tap water. If so what about the water spots. Or do you R.O. or DI water that has no minerals in it?
THANKS
Do you use water pressure machine and what pressure I'm looking for
Always place the broom facing upwards so it never makes contact with the roof/floor and doesnt pickup any sort of rocks or pebbles or sharp dirt that will scratch the solar panels
Thanks for sharing this video! I want to clean my solar panels too, but I would like to know, do I need to turn off the power in the solar box before I clean or not? Please inform! My roof the same your roof that you clean in the video. I have my solar panels about 6 years now, I never clean it. I think is time to clean now. I hope to hear from you soon. Thanks!
No need to shut anything down, DO inspect all electrical connections of the array as you mentioned years of operating without cleaning, probably best to hire a service this time to ensure everything is safe and secure. I personally do it aprox every month and THERE IS a performance difference and remember to do when the surface is not hot hope this helps.
I’m 13 and I need to clean a lot more outside because my dad has a bad back and a lot other things
Your an awesome child helping out your father. Keep up the hard work. Your going to do well in life 👍
Use a scraper or dont use a scraper? Keep the power on or turn it off? Soft towel or squeegee? This video was helpful or this video was awful? I am so confused reading the comments. Nobody has a clue.
Great video. And I love that song what is it?
Very good video
Nice... You need to clean the PV panels regularly to avoid drop in power generation.
Please have look @
Awesome video but where can you get that scraper? Any risk of gouging panels while scrapping?
Homedepot sells glass scrapers
that looked like a paint trim tool.
😮which type of solar panels used?
Hello wonderful persons, I am a college student doing a report on the solar industry. I would like to ask your permission to use some still shots of your equipment and technique for a 90 second video i am making. I will give all due credit and citations. Thanks for the info
Another video said not to use tap water. 🤔 What are your thoughts on this? Is there any worry of scratching the solar panels with the scraper?
Thanks
Your wrong you need to use a filter system so you do not stain the glass with hard city water you do not know the tds in your city you can buy a tds tester to test this it should be less than 10 tds that is from the panel manufacturers most city's are around 250 tds or more (tds Total Dissolved Solids)
You bring up a good point. If you don't have access to a water softener system or a water filtration system, perhaps just use a pack of water bottles? As wasteful as it may seem, you would only need to give it a good wash every few years. Best time to clean them is right before summer so you get the most efficiency from the sun.
Clean panels like you would clean your car. Never use a scaper. Soft cleaning cloth device on a wand with a small amount of soap in a bucket and shut the power off to the panels.
@@teresamacnicol7967 dionized water, or water through a softener, NO soap, no need to shut panels off.
Wash the panels early in the am or later towards the evening. As long as there is enough lighting for you to see. Just like washing a car, if you let the water sit, you'll have water spots. There are brushes with squeegee to wipe the excess water away.
Did you shut down the system?
You didn’t mention that you extension handle is fibreglass.
Try using a wash and wax car wash. It helps to maintain the cleanliness of the panel’s.
I wash mine every six months
"Using soap isn’t recommended as it can leave a film or residue that not only shades panels, but it can also encourage dirt to stick and build up faster."
Car wash soaps are not recommended for Sola panel cleaning. The wax will cause your panels to become even more shiny than they are already, therefore reflecting more light away than absorbing
What would you charge for a service like this ? Looks simple enough.
Probably $150 . Not much less.
Is what I would charge if I was in that business.
Just for a service provider to look at you would be $150 in California. From there, it only goes up. It also depends on the danger, complexity, and the total number of panels. If it's very complicated, the sky will be the limit. On some of these 2 story homes you often see in this state, a large panel set can be well over $300. But again, the sky is the limit. It's not impossible to spend $600 or more if the panels are hard to reach, or if you have Spanish tiles or a steep roof. Also, you have to factor in runoff, which will could dirty you or your neighbor's windows. That alone is the cost of cleaning the panels, so doubling the total. Also, you have to do this service regularly. It's just like cleaning a car.
I had heard that tap water contains too many salts etc to be used on solar panels. Is this correct?
Yes it will void your warranty
Ridiculous
Rain water doesn't have salt? Lmao
Oh no so rain water cannot touch your panels too?
@@UncleAlpha1 U have to put umbrellas for each panel if rains
Only use distilled water or spot free water. Tap water is hard water and leaves minerals and sediments when dried which would damage the panels over time
Best answer
I ain't calling a professional that's why I'm watching this video if I fall I simply die no take backs
I wonder if rainex is bad
You have a link for that scrapper?
squeegee better...
did you disconnect the panel to battery?
Power should be turned off panels to be able to clean
Whoever is reading this, never use a scraper or Squeegee on your solar panels. You’ll ruin them.
It's glass. Why would that ruin them?
@@BFArch0n it's glass, it scratches.
@@use-youtube you are calling people whack jobs, that alone lets me know that you have absolutely no interest in an answer (by the way, the answer is so painfully obvious that you might feel embarrassed to know the answer) but are here only to insult and to pick a fight.
Besides that, you insulted me and the other guy.
All that said, of course I will not answer you.
Want to know? Go and look it up!
What about brushes or push broom?
You use a filtered water or a much better choice idolize water.
What about well water
Okay, looks easy. However, how did he scrape the lower panels that couldn't be reached?
you dont. Just broom it
@@danielkofman4592 Then apparently none of them need to be scraped.
@@lmauser8490 the cleaner they are, the more sun comes through, thus they’re able to produce more energy, so it’s worth cleaning at least some of them to your best ability.
“Looks easy” until I read other comments saying that you shouldn’t use tap water from a hose, unless you have a home filtration/water softener system. I wonder how do the professional cleaners do it? Also, I heard some charge $4/panel; what’s average?
Why the need of a leaf blower if it's not going to be used?
They probably just forgot to say why, but I'm almost certain it's too blow the excess water off after they're clean to minimize water spots.
should we turn off the solar system before cleaning?
Only if you normally turn them off when it rains
Makes not difference on/off. When there is sun, there is electricity.
bet the neighbors did not like the overspray on their house windows.... at least yours are clean now right ?
Would you use a scraper to clean your car? Going to damage or scratch the glass panels which is permanent. Just because someone can make a video like this does not credit them with common sense or expertise
Wow no detergent just water.
Do not scrape most solar manufacturers have their systems rated for impact but not scraping
okay, so no soap glad to know. thanks guys.
The “cold water on hot glass” is bs lol. That’s some weak ass shit if that happens. What about solar panels in the blazing summer and then it rains? Literally the same concept as spraying it with water lol
Not to mention them being impervious to hail storms with 100mph+ panel strikes, but some room temp water being their demise 😂
Get a rotating Brush.......Clawn😂😂😂😂
Why did you have a so called mask on at least temporarily??? I thought you weren't using any soap or chemicals???
I can't believe you actually feel comfortable leaning close the edge of your house the way you do. I'm up 2 stories and I'm not doing this... sorry.
Your not supposed to use regular city water !!!!!
What about regular town water?
Sorry not recomended brush. Its better a mop and water
What do you have against talking, works a lot better!!!
I just want to know what brush he used?
@@NateRobertson-jl4jm Soft indoor broom
You are not supposed to use hard water There's a reflective film on the solar panels Hard water will eat the film. ppl they want u to do this so the company's will say There's oxidation, and we can't warnty those panels now.
Unless there is a severe case of soiling on the panels, It's best to just let rainwater wash pollen and dust off the panels. czcams.com/video/ee59CGo7ahY/video.html
This doesn’t add up. We all get bad gas mileage pulling a trailer. So he leaves his brand new trailer behind to get better mileage; only to spend money on another trailer. Whatever he paid for the second trailer would more than cover the bad mileage…… I’m thinking the Flagstaff is gone along with Mis Tammy. He needed the small trailer to have a place to live. In a few weeks he’s gonna come up with a BS story about how he had to get rid of the Flagstaff.
I see lots of problems in this video! This should be how not to wash solar panels!
An entire video of how not to wash solar panels. This is not a correct methodology. I cringed when he laid the brush on the asphalt roof tiles…dear god please don’t use that again on any panels.