How to clean your solar panels.
Cleaning solar panels with hard water.
The first thing you want to do is to check with your solar panel manufacturer.
All the electrical stuff is safely protected with aluminum frames hardened glass and insulation.
This is where cleaning solar panels may have to be done.
Module manufacturers recommend the use of distilled or de ionized water to clean solar panels.
Cleaning ones solar panels is not hard at all.
As a rule avoid using hard or mineral rich water.
It can damage panels over time.
But first let s look at when and why you might need to invest in solar panel cleaning equipment or hire a professional cleaning service.
We ll get to the best way to clean your solar panels in a minute.
They found that tilted panels don t require cleaning as much as flat panels.
Simply put if you can clean a window you can clean a solar panel.
Grime and bird poop doesn t need to cover an entire panel to have an effect.
It is not particularly complicated.
If your area only has hard tap water you can buy an inexpensive water softening hose attachment to filter out minerals.
They might have specific recommendations for cleaning.
They may look scary and technical but in fact the technology is securely sealed inside the solar panel.
Check with your solar installers and providers to determine if there is any information about solar panel cleaning recommendations and dos or don ts when it comes to cleaning your system.
Hard water is generally not harmful to one s health but can pose serious problems in industrial settings and when applied to solar panels.
Otherwise you can use distilled or de ionized water.
If your panels are readily accessible you can clean them yourself.
The temperature of the water being used for cleaning should ideally be the same as the solar panel temperature at the time of cleaning.
How to clean solar panels.
Hard water is water that has a high mineral content in contrast with soft water.
A maximum difference of 20 degrees is acceptable.
The most effective way to clean your solar panels is with a hose and a bucket of soapy water.
Fill a bucket or spray bottle with warm water and soap no other special equipment is needed.
Avoid using water with high mineral content.
Mineral rich water may leave deposits of particles over time and its chemistry is not recommended for the glass of modules.
Of primary concern for hard water spotting on solar panels is the combined levels of magnesium and calcium.
Solar panels are generally self cleaning but in particularly dry areas or where panel tilt is minimal dust and other substances such as bird droppings can build up over time and impact on the amount electricity generated by a module.
In this article you will learn how to clean solar panels the right way.
Don t use abrasive brushes pads or powders.
Use soft brushes and squeegees.
