How Often Do You Clean Your Solar Panels

Essentially under normal circumstances you ll likely pay more to have your panels cleaned than you ll earn back in solar efficiency.

How often do you clean your solar panels.

If the sun is beating down on the panels any water used can quickly evaporate and dirt will become smeared. Some say panels need an annual scrub others say quarterly. In most cases you won t need to clean your solar panels often if at all. We at lime solar cleaning recommend that panels be cleaned and inspected at a minimum once every six months.

Companies specializing in cleaning solar panels generally say. Solar panels are usually installed at the right tilt to self clean whenever there s a good downpour of rain. After all anything that accumulates dirt on them for example dust or pollen will get washed off the next time it rains. There are some times it might make sense to clean your solar panels though.

Clean your solar panelson an overcast day early in the morning or in the evening. Most manufacturers recommend cleaning at least twice a year. If you ve got a lot of bird droppings on your panels rain might not wash these off very readily so it s a good idea to clean them off. If they came out once or twice a year to clean your solar panels that would probably be enough.

Depending on the size or your solar energy system the area in which you live and the different tiers of cleaning packages your company offers solar panel cleaning services can cost anywhere from 100 600 a visit. It may be a good idea to freshen up your panels occasionally if you live in an area with heavy particulates in the air. In dry regions however the wind can blow dust onto your panels and with a minimal panel tilt rain might not rinse it off sufficiently. You can include a solar panel cleaning as part of your spring cleaning routine.

In most cases occasional rain will be enough to naturally and safely keep your solar panels clean and free of debris that could lower production. This tends to result in a 3 to 5 increase in efficiency. For a homeowner that adds up to saving about 20 a year by cleaning their solar panels halfway through the summer. In the southwest region of the u s where rainfall is limited for several months at a time the accumulation of dirt is far greater.

Early morning can be a particularly good time for cleaning as dew that has settled on the panels overnight will likely have softened grime. At the very least you should do an annual cleaning of your panels. Cleaning at regular intervals prevents buildup of residue and keeps your panels operating optimally at all times. H however some places do require extra attention.

Solar panels that are cleaned once and twice a year produce 3 5 and 5 1 more electricity respectively than those that are left uncleaned. One company selling an automated washing system says panels should be washed every couple of weeks.