Couple of issues of simple physics.
1. The energy used to cool the panels is more than the extra power produced so you have net negative gain.
2. I understand why you are using a water softener to prevent scale build up, but the trade off anyone that lives near a sea is salt water is hell on panels. You are trading Calcium and Magnesium for Sodium Chloride (salt).
Unfortunately you are not the first to go down this road. Many have gone down this road before you and discovered the gain does not offset the energy used to run the pumps. That is why you don't see any systems for sale. Then you got the environmental whackos would eat you alive because you are wasting considerable amounts of water, especially in Perth where you have extremely low humidity means most of the water evaporates before you can collect it and recycle.
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Water cooled solar panels for significant output boost
Hi all. I know this has been done before, but I can't see any links to similar setups on this forum so figured you might be interested. I've set up an automatic water cooling system to improve my PV output on hot days. Take a look:
Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.
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