Want to learn about solar, Central Indiana

[mauricerichter]

Due to my career, I work with AC voltage up to 460 and DC. Hobbies and work experience in residential construction and repair. Interested in solar voltage, don't know enough to decide on DIY or contractor. Where can read up on newbie type questions? Or where to post specific questions? Such as how long does an average solar panel last? Such as I see dirt accumulated on my metal roofs (some are 3/12 pitch, some are 12/12), do solar panels need to be cleaned periodically? We are in Central Indiana. Thank you!

[bcroe]

Solar works in central IN, probably better than here in northern IL. Find a
category that interests you and study some threads.

Solar panels can be more optimum on a ground mount, but roof mounting
works. The quickest way to get through the permit paperwork and construction
no doubt is to contract the job. But DIY can save a lot of money if you can solve
all the issues. Panels are probably the most reliable and most long lasting part
of a Photo Voltic system, at perhaps only a quarter of a system cost. They should
work for decades, with slow degradation.

With typical slope and midwest rain, you might never need to clean off the dirt.
Worry instead about keeping them cleared of snow, much can be done to manage
this. good luck, Bruce Roe

[J.P.M.]

Start w/ a (free) PDF download of "Solar Power Your Home for Dummies".

A revised and newer hardcopy is ~ $25 at bookstores or Amazon. A good primer.
Come back w/questions that will fill in knowledge gaps your read of the book opens up.

Panels last a long time - probably a lot longer than you'll own any array.

Panels foul at varying rates based mostly on location and general precipitation rates and to lesser degrees on things like tilt and very local wind and precip. patterns immediately adjacent to an array. My array's production rate decreases ~ 0.75% to maybe 0.9% per week or so if it doesn't rain. A decent rain restores ~ 3/4 of the performance my array losses through fouling.

If you have regular rain or snow, you might not ever need to clean an array. But, to repeat, all that is highly location dependent. If I lived downwind and immediately adjacent to an 8 lane interstate, things would be different.

As Bruce writes, in central IN, you will have additional considerations about what to do, if anything, about snow effects and possible removal. Ground mounts elevated above snow line and variable tilt arrays can help mitigate the PITA of snow.

Welcome to the neighborhood.

[heimdm]

Bloomington, here. Working on going through this as well.