Cleaning solar panels

I wonder if an occasional application of Rain-X might help.

Ah, googling that, cleaning solar panels is a well "published" topic ...

Now all you have to do is get up on the roof at night when it is raining. :-)

This is generally non-trivial.

Friends have solar panels but you wouldn't get me up there even on a dry sunny day. They are aware of the loss of power dues to dirt, bird crap etc. I'm not sure that they have made the business case to pay somebody to go up and clean them on a regular basis. Doing it at night is likely to make it even more expensive.

The cost of cleaning needs to be less than the generation loss.

Also, why at night?

The panels are generating during the day, but they should be safe to wash with a hose and brush AFAIK. Safety disclaimer just in case someone does something silly?

This may be more applicable to solar farms.

Cheers

Dave R

Seems like an ill thought out idea. Solar power is dangerous enough for installers without homeowners falling off their roofs at night. (Horses have hooves or hoofs but houses only have roofs)

Tim

What's particularly dangerous about solar power? The panels and D.C. connectors are pretty well insulated.

Wether they need cleaning or not depends on the installation; panels at a steep angle in a normally rainy climate and with fairly clean atmosphere shouldn't need cleaning. If there on a barn roof in a farmyard they probably will.

Our window cleaner has very succesfully branched out into solar panel cleaning; it's now the biggest part of his business. He mainly does solar farms, which seem to be cleaned twice a year. He uses pole cleaning, so it's all done from ground level.

Harry should be encouraged to do his (

Most are on roofs. Installers fall off.

People make money washing wheely bins. Doesn't make it essential though.

Tim

Chris Hogg wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

I was only thinking yesterday - if a panel is shorted out does it harm it?

No, they have rooves as well

indeed - but did you *have* to include the link?

Maybe because one's shadow will interrupt the generation of a teeny-tiny amount of electricity if done during the day? Similar to the reason for doing it while it is raining.

Using 80 grit sandpaper ...

The OED begs to differ.

Any ful kno that Chambers is *the* authority on everything. ;-)

Tim

The main problem can be bird s*it. If the panels are on a roof, there is no problem. They are below ridge height and the bird sit on thr ridge and s*it on the roof.

If they are at ground level, they sit on the panels and s*it on the panels.

The panels are self cleaning, normal muck washes off.

If you clean them by day, you can feel a prickle of electricity sometimes. Evening is best, voltage is down and there is still light.

Apparently not.

Its them bloody Pigeons again. Brian

Excellent point! I expect the water doesn't help :-)