Should I wash my solar panels?

Yes, but how often depends on your location and how your environmental conditions affect the cleanliness of your panels.

• Nearby trees with high pollen count are worse in the spring.  Pine trees produce a lot of yellow pollen dust that is large and heavy. It also has a waxy coating.
• Located near a freeway that is under construction?  Bulldozers kick up lots of dust and depending on the speed of the landscaping, it may be dusty for years.
• Located in a rural area where there is crop development?  Your neighbor is plowing his field upwind from yours?
• Of course there are other causes of dust and you need to look at your panels a couple times each year, usually in the spring and summer.

What makes it hard to see your panels and decide if you need to wash them?

• It a 2-story building without easy ladder access.
• You are not comfortable climbing a ladder.

What is the best way to wash the panels?

• If you are located in areas with a lot of rainfall, then you don’t need to wash.
• If you have little rainfall in the summer, then just drag out your hose and shoot the panels with water in the morning.  Avoid washing hot panels with cool water as you may cause the panels to crack due to thermal shock.
• If you have a sticky, dusty panel and you can climb up to the roof, connect your hose to a motorhome wash brush and wash it well….no soap needed.  These motorhome brushes can extend at the handle, giving you a longer reach into the middle of the array.
• Observe OSHA guidelines for fall protection on the roof!