Why there is a need to clean solar panels
Generally, people who have solar panels installed at their rooftop are flat, tilted, and are placed on your rooftop. It is very often that we wash these solar panels or we clean them. People most often think that these panels can be washed automatically as its rains. Normally dust, leaves, and birds’ droppings are mostly the common solar blockers.
Dust, grime, pollen, bird droppings, and leaves may all degrade the efficiency of your solar system. Thorough cleaning regularly can greatly increase its performance. It makes sense if solar panels are covered with dust that this dust can be washed off with rain, but if there are bird droppings on solar panels there is a need to wash them and clean them off.
If you are living in an area that receives very little rain then there is surely a need to make a special arrangement to clean your solar panels very often. Then there comes a question that does dirt affect the efficiency of the solar panel. The answer is yes, all this dirt, leaves, and birds dropping affect the efficiency of solar panels as all these blockings affects the amount of sunlight that reaches the panels and in turn, affects the efficiency of solar panel.
How to clean a dirty solar panel:
Hiring a professional If you have decided to clean your solar panel you can hire a professional for this purpose. A lot of solar companies offer this type of service and cost a service fee for this. They might offer it as an annual maintenance service at the time of installation. Several businesses are willing to give the service for a cost. They provide cleaning services on a monthly or annual basis, as well as on-demand maintenance.
There are some areas where there is a lot of dust and need professional help to clean and wipe off the dirt, if one is cleaning off the solar panels himself a risk factor is involved in it as professionals know how to handle the solar panels and after cleaning the panels are tidied up to the best possible standards.
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Do it yourself (DIY)
If there is a little dirt, you can clean the panels yourself by keeping some of the important things in mind. All you need is to
- Shutting down
Shutting down all the systems completely as per shutdown procedures. Don’t forget to read the user manual too.
- TimeÂ
Choose a good time for cleaning a solar panel as on sunny days panels are heated up and when cool water is used to clean these panels they may break due to sudden temperature change, so choose early morning or a cool evening for this purpose.
- Correct directionÂ
It’s good to clean the panel from the top of the panel and avoid directing water on the back of the solar panel and the gaps between the panels. It should be kept in mind to only through water on the front of a panel.
- Use a soft cloth for cleaning
Use a soft cloth and a mild soap for cleaning solar panels. A high-quality soft brush and squeegee with a plastic blade on one side and a cloth-covered sponge on the other, combined with a lengthy extension, might be the ideal tool – and keep you securely on the ground.
- Safety measures
  Using water increases the risk of working on your roof. When water is used to clean a roof, it can become rather slippery. If it is not possible to clean your panels from the ground, do not attempt to reach your rooftop unless you have the necessary safety equipment and training. Instead, for your safety, employ a fully skilled professional cleaner.
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