Once solar panels are installed, they are often out of sight out of mind being on your roof!  However it is because the panels are on the roof that they require some attention throughout the year. There are many external elements that lead to your solar panels becoming quite dirty; dust, dirt, leaves, bird and bat droppings, to name a few, which is why we recommend that you organise to clean your solar panels on a regular basis.

Do solar panels really get that dirty?

Yes! The build up on your solar panels can reduce the energy yielded by up to 25%.

A solar system performs best when completely unobstructed and able to fully absorb as much of the sun’s rays as possible. Residual layers of a build up of these external influences on the panels can quite significantly affect the performance of your panels.

Imagine your car windscreen, if you left your car sat outside for weeks there would be a significant build up of grime on your glass that would obstruct your view. You would have to clean it with the wipers or other means in order to see through it again and even then, as you drove it would continue to get dirty.

How often should solar panels be cleaned?

Although the rain does remove some dirt and dust, it won’t remove it all.

At Goodhew, we recommend that you clean your solar panels every six months. This ensures that your system is always performing optimally and especially important if you live in an area prone to lots of dust, debris or salt spray.

Cleaning should be left to the professionals. Not only is getting on the roof dangerous, it is important that panels are cleaned carefully, using products that are safe for your panels and rinsed properly to not cause any damage.

At Goodhew we provide a full cleaning and maintenance service, allowing us to check the condition of your panels and conduct a thorough clean of them at the same time so that they can continue to operate optimally.

Solar maintenance and cleaning costs depend on the size of your system; contact us today for a quote!