How do you clean your panels?

[J.P.M.]

https://www.google.com/search?q=anti...rpaneltalk.com

http://sinovoltaics.com/learning-cen...-solar-panels/

My Trina AllMax have:
3.2 mm (0.13 inches), High Transmission, AR Coated Tempered Glass

From the install manual:

Your installation attachment didn't come through.

Anti reflective coatings are not protective coatings. If they were they would not need special handling or consideration at installation. Scratches and abrasion are to be avoided.

They are however, and by all or most every account, pretty robust in terms of how they stand up to the environment, and to cleaning with non harsh soaps and solvents. I can verify that robustness from a lot of cleaning brushing and hosing over the last 4+ years.

As most any reputable source will suggest, if anything in addition to plain water, a small amount of a mild detergent can be used.

Abrasive cleaners or abrasive cleaning with such materials as Scotch Brite is not recommended, nor are harsh chemicals such as caustics or acids, such as, for example, fluoric acid which is used to etch glass and will destroy most dialectic materials that a lot of ARC's are made of. .

I've used Palm Olive dish soap about 6 or so times for 4+ years when I clean my array with the specific purpose of getting a very clean output estimation for array fouling measurement reasons. At such times, I also use Windex for those super cleanings and wipe the entire array with lint free cloth as a finish. A Sunpower White Paper has suggested Windex to produce no harm to the ARC. All the cleanings and rubbing I've done has produce no deleterious effects I can measure. For less strenuous cleaning requirements, I suppose car wash soap would be as adequate.

For most every month or so semi-scheduled cleanings, plain tap (hose) water works about as well as more sophisticated methods for a lot less hassle. 10 min. or so with a hose will get ~ 3/4 of the dirt. Just hose in the early A.M. before the glazing heats up. Get after the big guano by getting it wet, letting it set for 5 min. or so, and then get after it with a soft cloth. Rinse and rinse/drip dry.

If you're interested, see my prior post for why I believe hard water spots don't matter much to performance, if at all.

If anyone has data from reputable source(s) that suggests otherwise (not just some "feeling" or conjecture, or some anecdotal jibberish), I'd like to see it. I can change my opinion, but I've not found a reason to do so yet, and I've been looking.

[frankiek3]

What kind of protective coating would that be ?

https://www.google.com/search?q=anti...rpaneltalk.com

http://sinovoltaics.com/learning-cen...-solar-panels/

My Trina AllMax have:
3.2 mm (0.13 inches), High Transmission, AR Coated Tempered Glass

From the install manual:
- Normally rain water is sufficient to keep the modules clean however it is particularly important to ensure that the solar modules are clean before onset of summer. Products installed at a tilt angle below 10degrees or which are located in particularly dusty areas, are installed in landscape orientation or in areas of high pollution or close to large bird populations will require more regular cleaning.

- When cleaning the module use a soft cloth together with a mild detergent and clean water. Take care to avoid severe thermal shocks which might damage the module by cleaning modules with water which has a similar temperature to the modules being cleaned.

- In the event that the solar modules need to be cleaned then clean the module use a soft cloth together with a mild detergent and clean water. Take care to avoid severe thermal shocks which might damage the module by cleaning modules with water which has a similar temperature to the modules being cleaned.

[J.P.M.]

Don't use dish soap if they have a protective coating. Car wash soap should be fine though.

What kind of protective coating would that be ?

[frankiek3]

Don't use dish soap if they have a protective coating. Car wash soap should be fine though.

[littleharbor]

That's some fine looking topsoil ya got there anyway.

[bcroe]

However, my solar guy found a local company that does helical ground mounts. The supports are helical anchors spun in with a skid steer auger attachment. I used this style of ground mount for an additional 12 panels that are yet to be wired up. I most likely would have done all of my panels this way if I knew about it earlier. I have lots of open land since I have three acres.

I can't use the easy ways , because of all the rock below the first half foot, must dig it out. But with
my own mini equipment, its not costly. Bruce Roe


PVSep17rock2.JPG

[reader2580]

My original plan was to go full ground mount. The solar guy who helped me with the installation convinced me to mount the panels on the roof of my garage. He said it would be less expensive and even if I paid his employer full price to remove and reinstall panels that I would still be ahead.

However, my solar guy found a local company that does helical ground mounts. The supports are helical anchors spun in with a skid steer auger attachment. I used this style of ground mount for an additional 12 panels that are yet to be wired up. I most likely would have done all of my panels this way if I knew about it earlier. I have lots of open land since I have three acres.

[littleharbor]

Given my druthers, from an engineering, practical, and most every other standpoint, I'd prefer a ground mount hands down. Full stop.

However, and probably mostly because housing was chosen before any PV/retrofit considerations, I'd bet that about 90+ % of all residential systems are not ground mounted. Therefore, the castor oil is administered as a roof mount.

Ya' deal with the situation as you find it. Your situation, while not unique, is quite a bit different than Joe & Jane Sixpack's.

Do they even make 6-packs anymore?

[J.P.M.]

Yea, pick your poison. Death by falling, or electrocution? I will add this to my list of advantages
of a ground mount. Bruce Roe

Given my druthers, from an engineering, practical, and most every other standpoint, I'd prefer a ground mount hands down. Full stop.

However, and probably mostly because housing was chosen before any PV/retrofit considerations, I'd bet that about 90+ % of all residential systems are not ground mounted. Therefore, the castor oil is administered as a roof mount.

Ya' deal with the situation as you find it. Your situation, while not unique, is quite a bit different than Joe & Jane Sixpack's.

[SunEagle]

Yea, pick your poison. Death by falling, or electrocution? I will add this to my list of advantages
of a ground mount. Bruce Roe

+1 for the ground mount.

[bcroe]

Except when your sight is diminished by the reduced light and you lose your footing on the roof and mean ol' mr. gravity shortens the distance between you and the ground.

Yea, pick your poison. Death by falling, or electrocution? I will add this to my list of advantages
of a ground mount. Bruce Roe

[J.P.M.]

If your panels are configured in series strings, It would be much electrically safer to clean
them when it is completely dark. Bruce (rains a lot here) Roe

Except when your sight is diminished by the reduced light and you lose your footing on the roof and mean ol' mr. gravity shortens the distance between you and the ground.

[bcroe]

These panels are used and came very dirty to start with. I should have cleaned them before installation, but circumstances didn't allow that. It has rained quite a bit since installation in October and they are still dirty.

This is probably more of a one time thing than ongoing. Will just water from a hose really clean them up?

If your panels are configured in series strings, It would be much electrically safer to clean
them when it is completely dark. Bruce (rains a lot here) Roe

[J.P.M.]

These panels are used and came very dirty to start with. I should have cleaned them before installation, but circumstances didn't allow that. It has rained quite a bit since installation in October and they are still dirty.

This is probably more of a one time thing than ongoing. Will just water from a hose really clean them up?

Depending on the nature and extent of the fouling, water from a hose will probably remove some/a lot of it. You've got nothing to lose by a hosing. As I wrote, I've found that for my array, once "deep cleaned", hosing ~ 1X/month when it doesn't rain will restore most of the performance lost from dirt, etc.

If the panels have not been cleaned in some fashion in the past, or in a long time, I'd speculate it's possible that some of the fouling may be of the type that has etched the glass or got baked on over a long time period, and you may be stuck with some more/less permanent performance penalty. Impossible to say for sure.

I'd try some glass cleaner - windex , blue squirtum' type - a soft cloth, and some gentle persistence on a small area, but no abrasives and no very hard scrubbing to see if the fouling is dirt that can be removed or if it's something of a more permanent nature. Anti reflection coatings (ARC's) are pretty durable but can be damaged by harsh chemicals and abrasion. I'd be more inclined toward more soft scrubbing with less applied force and more time rather than more applied force and less time.

If the glazing surface cannot be restored by cleaning, at least a 1X/month or so regular hosing will help to limit further deterioration in performance from more dirt accumulation.

[reader2580]

These panels are used and came very dirty to start with. I should have cleaned them before installation, but circumstances didn't allow that. It has rained quite a bit since installation in October and they are still dirty.

This is probably more of a one time thing than ongoing. Will just water from a hose really clean them up?