Anyone know a company that clean Solar Roof panels?

[broyo]

@jboy210 I lucked out on my first random Yelp result and went with https://solarpanelcleaningpros.com/

( https://www.yelp.com/biz/solar-panel-cleaning-pros-walnut-creek-4 )

Called them yesterday and they came this morning. Very reasonable and they said they'd done other Solarroofs before. Two guys, a long ladder and a flow-through brush, so they didn't need to walk on the roof. I was worried because my place is 2 story with very narrow side yards for the ladder but it worked out fine. I imagine they'd cover Pleasanton as well based on their site (I'm in Richmond), but just call and see.

I'll give it till tomorrow or so to judge if it made any real production difference, but at least it LOOKS better

 

[jboy210]

@jboy210 I lucked out on my first random Yelp result and went with https://solarpanelcleaningpros.com/

( Solar Panel Cleaning Pros - Walnut Creek, CA )

Called them yesterday and they came this morning. Very reasonable and they said they'd done other Solarroofs before. Two guys, a long ladder and a flow-through brush, so they didn't need to walk on the roof. I was worried because my place is 2 story with very narrow side yards for the ladder but it worked out fine. I imagine they'd cover Pleasanton as well based on their site (I'm in Richmond), but just call and see.

I'll give it till tomorrow or so to judge if it made any real production difference, but at least it LOOKS better

Thanks so much. I will get in contact with them.

 

[jjrandorin]

@jboy210 I lucked out on my first random Yelp result and went with https://solarpanelcleaningpros.com/

( https://www.yelp.com/biz/solar-panel-cleaning-pros-walnut-creek-4 )

Called them yesterday and they came this morning. Very reasonable and they said they'd done other Solarroofs before. Two guys, a long ladder and a flow-through brush, so they didn't need to walk on the roof. I was worried because my place is 2 story with very narrow side yards for the ladder but it worked out fine. I imagine they'd cover Pleasanton as well based on their site (I'm in Richmond), but just call and see.

I'll give it till tomorrow or so to judge if it made any real production difference, but at least it LOOKS better

Awesome, helpful first post! Welcome to TMC, hope you stick around!

 

[SMAlset]

Our solar was installed during the SCU Complex and other northern Calif. lightning wildfires that affected our area so we had them cleaned today. We did get a good amount of rain one afternoon through the next morning recently that helped wash off a lot of the ash but having taken our cars to the DIY carwash with power washer spray we saw that there was still an ash film left that required more than just the water to remove it.

Have one before and after photo to show (not great resolution) and there is a noticeable difference in the reflection of the vent pipe on one of the panels so we feel better having it cleaned now instead of waiting until the Spring.

Before (after good rain):

After solar panel cleaning:

BTW these Q-Cell 340 panels do not have a highly reflective mirror-like surface. My husband said it’s actually a slightly bumpy surface and he’s read articles on the technology that uses it to spread out the sunlight to be more efficient. Here’s a photo of our panel coming off the truck and then just mounted on our roof.


Don’t know if anyone has looked at the acidity levels of the ash that fell here in Northern California during these recent wildfires but I saw this LA Times article from 2007 when the ash from the wildfires then was tested. Wildfires left caustic ash, study finds

 

[jboy210]

Reporting back.

We did use Solar Panel Cleaning Pros. The results were mixed.

First, while they did have some experience cleaning a solar roof, they only wanted to clean the Active portions of the roof. Each SolarRoof owner should have map of the active and inactive tiles on their roof and they asked for this.

Second, their equipment consists of 20-foot poles. These were too short to clean all of the active areas of our roof. A 30-foot pole would have worked, as would stepping on the roof which they did not want to do.

Third, the actual effect of the cleaning was minimal. The yield was up about 7%. So perhaps cleaning is not necessary. Especially if the roof is going to end up spotted.

Fourth, the recent rains (finally!) looks like they did a pretty god job of cleaning the areas the cleaners did not. The entire roof now looks uniformly black.

 

[Uncle Paul]

Windex and Fuller brush sell spray on cleaning solutions with surfactants that remove more of the dirt. Then you rinse off the solution and let dry. While not as good as a scrubbing, it cleans better than just rain or hosing your panels off.

Might be a partial solution for those that can spray them off with a garden hose.

I use this to clean off some high windows that are hard for me to get to with a squeege.

 

[365gtb4]

One of my arrays is on the side of a hill. You can't clean the array from the ground and using a ladder because the slope is very steep. I'm in the process of building a gangway so cleaning is quick and safe. I searched for a company who would build such a platform and the pricing was crazy. My build is all aluminum and will be permanent. The walkway is narrow with high railings to lean against while using a long extension pole-brush-water jets rig. If I were to do it again I would have the solar panel installer build the gangway as part of the design. Cleaning quotes were north of $500. Pay back will be around 1 to 2 years. With the gangway it will take me about 30 minutes to clean the 30 panels.

 

[Uncle Paul]

Accesability for panel cleaning should be a consideration by most homeowners.

Often the most efficient area for installation is high up and unreachable. Many install them up there and they lie, untouched, except for natural rain and wind for the rest of their 20-30 year life.

 

[wjgjr]

Odd that they only wanted to clean the active tiles - I get that is where the production gains would be, but I would think homeowners would want to have a consistent cleanness to the roof. Maybe they need to provide prices for both options (though it seems like as long as they are out there and cleaning, just doing everything wouldn't take that much more work, and they don't need to worry about where to start and stop.)

 

[jboy210]

Odd that they only wanted to clean the active tiles - I get that is where the production gains would be, but I would think homeowners would want to have a consistent cleanness to the roof. Maybe they need to provide prices for both options (though it seems like as long as they are out there and cleaning, just doing everything wouldn't take that much more work, and they don't need to worry about where to start and stop.)

I think their logic is simple. Get done quicker for the same money.

Also, doing a complete cleaning would have required them to get longer poles and/or getting up on the roof.

 

[sorka]

I think before you pay someone to do it, you should try the hosing-off-method. You can make a ghetto "extender hose" by duct taping a short male/female leader hose to one of those extender poles used to change high-up light bulbs or paint high-up walls. You can then stick your normal garden hose up to this without messing up your normal hose. On the other end, you can even stick one of those foamy-car-wash attachments to the end and blast some suds.

It won't be 100% clean, but I'm sure the entire state of California will catch on fire in November after the General Election anyway and you can repeat this exercise. There will be human sacrifice! Dogs and cats living together!

I use a car foamer which has great reach and then rinse with deionized water with rotary on the power washer. By the time it gets up the panels, the deionized is just a cloud of vapor that gradually rinses off the panels.

I bought a 30 foot extension pole with a 22" microfiber panel cleaning brush but so far it's been completely unnecessary. The foam and then rinse leave them spots and perfectly clean.

I do it at night after the panels have cooled down. Interestingly the glass beads up very very well so by the time morning arrives, the original rinse water is completely gone.

The last time I cleaned them was minutes before the rain arrived to which I just foamed the panels let the rain rinse them.

 

[sorka]

I know this is a bit off the topic since I am not in the bay area and dont have a solar roof, but instead have solar panels. I had my solar panels cleaned in march of this year, but due to the fires etc, you can see the difference in dirt etc on my panels in what is basically 7-8 months.

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How did they do this in direct sunlight without spotting?

 

[jjrandorin]

How did they do this in direct sunlight without spotting?

I think they used deionized water or something. They hooked up their hose to my water source and their hose was connected to their truck (like a carpet cleaning place does). They told me they were not using harsh cleaners so it wouldnt spot or do anything to the panels. I think they were just using deionized water.

 

[marcor]

Does anyone here have experiences/recommendations on getting their Solar Roof professionally cleaned? Specifically out of the Bay Area?

Thanks.

 

[SVDNN]

Mother Nature…inexpensive but not so reliable up here

 

[LoudMusic]

Is that even a thing? How much is it worth to you? How dirty to your panels get? Have you ever cleaned them yourself? Did you see a significant improvement in performance?

 

[Vines]

Does anyone here have experiences/recommendations on getting their Solar Roof professionally cleaned? Specifically out of the Bay Area?

Thanks.

I recommend Porter Solar Solutions www.portersolarsolutions.com