Solar Panel Cleaning
With the increase of renewable energy more and more homes and businesses are looking at solar panels as a way of helping bring down rising energy costs.
Having solar panels is a great way of creating your own green energy and there are now over 4 million homes and business across the UK creating solar energy, with this figure estimated to rise to 10 million by 2020.
The panels themselves work by turning the light energy produced by the sun into a DC current that then flows to an inverter box in your home. The inverter then changes the DC power created by the panels to usable AC current which powers your home, with many homes and businesses then selling any surplus energy generated back to the electricity board. This is a fantastic way to create green energy but the panels do require cleaning to continue functioning at maximum productivity, due to the way they work.
Cleaning your solar panels regularly can improve their efficiency by allowing more light through to produce more DC current back to your inverter. The cleaning is always done in the same way with one of our operators using pure RO water to remove any bird droppings, dust, algae and leaves from the surface of the panel, allowing the maximum amount of light through to the cells underneath. RO water is the only approved way to clean these panels as chemicals or detergents could cause damage and will invalidate any warranty should there be a problem with one of the panels in the future.
PPC have an adaptable reach-and-wash system to reach even the most awkward of roof panels, and can also arrange access equipment for large scale commercial rooftop cleans. We pride ourselves on doing things safely and have all the correct equipment to enable us to carry out this type of cleaning in accordance to the guidelines set by the HSE. We also provide a visual inspection when quoting any solar panel cleaning as a damaged could prove to be very dangerous if coming into contact with an operator cleaning from the ground, as we all know water and electricity don’t mix.
Cleaning Regularity
There are many cleaning companies out there now offering regular solar panel cleaning and making claims of up to 50% increase in productivity, but all of these claims have been made without any proven statistics at all.
The panels do require cleaning for maximum productivity as bird dropping and algae will block the light reaching the cells and lower the output of the panels, so cleaning them from time to time is a good idea to keep them working efficiently.
Any cleaning regularity should depend on how exposed the panels are and how dirty they get over a period of time but we would suggest at least one clean per year as a minimum, as this is the most cost effective way. If you would like to look at a regular cleaning programme then please speak to one of our staff when they visit on the initial inspection, as discounts are available.
Accredited and Approved Contractor
We have achieved our Approved Contractor status with Clean Solar Solutions which is a benchmark for Solar Panel cleaning in our industry. This accreditation comes from our operatives passing the required certification (see below). We also make a commitment to uphold these certifications and provide the same training to any new staff that we recruit.
Clean Solar Approved Contractor
Operator Training Certificates
Several of our operators have attended a course for solar panel cleaning and are now certified to deliver this service safely.
John Fairbrass Solar Cleaning Certificate
Peter Short Solar Cleaning Certificate
Matt Poole Solar Cleaning Certificate
If you would like one of our trained solar panel cleaning operators to provide you with a free quotation then please get in contact for your free no obligation quote, or for any service and advice on solar energy please contact Steve at Solar Solutions on 07826 527 366
