Solar Panel Cleaning?

[Off Grid Solar]

My company has developed a product that is sprayed on solar cells and panels that actually increases the watt output of a solar panel or cell by allowing more photons to be collected. It also helps to reduce the temp. The new product reduces the UV light that ages solar panels or solar cells.
The end results is more power from the panel or cell. It has taken 3 years of testing and the results on a 8 year old 100 watt solar panel before "Solar Magic" the solar panel's output was 82 watts. After applying solar magic the 100 watt solar panel was putting out 97 watts due to high temp. The same 100 watt solar panel at 68 degrees F. put out 100 watts like it was new. We have completed the testing of "Solar Magic and now we are planning to mass produce this new product. We have been quiet about the product up till now. Who is interested in restoreing power to the panels? Sorry this only works on PV solar panels.

[darelldd]

Is this a different product than the one above for which investors are being sought?

[Off Grid Solar]

No this is the same product. We call the product "Solar Magic". I have been the test site or test bed for this product. The material that is sprayed on covers the solar cells. The sun's energy is absorbed with this material and not refected like glass. We call these particals of the sun's energy Photons. At the solar cell level photons are converted into electrons. Electrons moving are called AMPS. The more AMPS or Current the more electric power is produced. Simple. It has taken over 3 years of testing and trial and error to come up with the right formular. It works.

[retemdrawkcab]

I have 6.8 Kw at my residence mounted on poles in the back yard, not on the roof. It's all dirt and generally windy here so efficiently keeping the panels clean has become somewhat of a quest for me.

Window cleaner (Windex) alone is time consuming and lots of elbow grease. Washing with a garden hose while brushing was a bit better, though after drying you can still see a dirt film.

I rented a 1,500 psi pressure washer to see if that would be easier or quicker but found it left streaks of dirt afterward and I was concerned about the seals around the panel housing.

A water fed brush (soft bristle) worked best as it kept the particals suspended in water while brushing and ran off with the water due to the slope of the panel. The downside is having to dry them with a shamois or towels so they don't spot (hard water deposits).

The company that put the system in came by once to use their system but I was not impressed. It was a demineralizing filter cart obtainable from Costco with a water fed soft brush on an extension pole. Simply put, the flow restriction of this filter cart was such that it made little more than mud on the panels and I was concerned that continual brushing would end up scratching the glass. After he said he was done, there was still lots of dirt film left over.

I think I'm on the right track with the water fed soft brush. Tomorrow I'm talking to Culligan about an exchangeable soft water (resin) tank that I can pipe from an outside water bib to use as the wash water. They tell me flow and pressure on this size of tank is nominal and these systems are what car lots use to wash cars and not dry them. No deposits - or very little. If this idea works from a cost perspective, I just need to find the best extension pole/brush for about a 14 reach.

I am interested in anything that will either help maintain or boost effeciency of this PV system. If there is a coating that will last that does what is claimed above, I'd like to hear more about it.

[Roddick]

One option for keeping your solar panels clean is to roll up your sleeves and get a good cleaning kit to help you easily and quickly clean your panels. The frequency of cleaning depends on your neighborhood and how quickly your solar panels get dirty.

Another option would be to employ an automated cleaning system that will clean your solar panels at a set interval. An automated cleaning system is a good option to cut down on the cleaning care for your system but will add to the overall cost of your solar panel system.

Lastly, you can consider a cleaning service with a local service provider.

[solar_geoff]

There is a service called Solar Maid that uses a biodegradable degergent to wash the array - without pressure washing. I don't really know that much about them, but some contractors around this area have been including some kind of cleaning service with system purchases. I am not sure how wide spread they are, but they are a franchise organization that operates in various regions in the US, so I guess just Google them if want to learn more and feel like paying someone to do it...

[SolarPanelCleaningCA]

Solar Panel Cleaning in Southern California

I own a solar panel cleaning business in Southern California. We do not use any kind of chemicals or detergent because they leave a sticky residue on the solar panels This sticky residue gives the dust something to stick to, and they get dirty very fast.
We use a our Green Solar Panel Cleaning Technology involves super purified water, which has been known to keep the solar panels clean up to 10 times longer.
The only down side; it is expensive to set up this kind of system.
I have more information about the advantages at our website;

[Sunnydays]

Solar Panel Cleaner

I have to wash down the panels here in Toronto as, we have lots of bird poo and dust. Product X works well so you don't have to scub to hard.

[Mike90250]

If you want to preserve the 20+ year warranty on your panels, you should only use what the Mfg suggests.

[ionicsolarcleaning]

Only use Pure Water to clean solar panels

If you continue to use any cleaning chemicals you are guarenteed to leave sticky polymers behind, these are added to chemicals to make the surface shine as they fill in the micro caverties to produce a even surface.
Polymers will attract dirt even quicker becasue they are soft and "tacky" and you will end up cleaning the solar panels more frequently.

Use Pure Water - Pure Water will breakdown the dirt naturally as the active ions turn back to H2o. Using Pure Water through a window cleaners waterfed pole allows you to clean the panels safely from the ground, NO LADDERS

This equipment can be purchased locally through professional suppliers in your area. In-expensive "Residential Kits" are available and special accessories maybe required depending on the angle and pitch of the panels.

If I can be of any help please do not hesitate to contact myself through our website ionicsolar.com If I help, then I am happy.

(And if you wish to pay for advertising space, then the board owners are happy too. till then, we don't allow clickable links in messages.) Moderator.

[russ]

If you continue to use any cleaning chemicals you are guarenteed to leave sticky polymers behind, these are added to chemicals to make the surface shine as they fill in the micro caverties to produce a even surface.
Polymers will attract dirt even quicker becasue they are soft and "tacky" and you will end up cleaning the solar panels more frequently.

Use Pure Water - Pure Water will breakdown the dirt naturally as the active ions turn back to H2o. Using Pure Water through a window cleaners waterfed pole allows you to clean the panels safely from the ground, NO LADDERS

This equipment can be purchased locally through professional suppliers in your area. In-expensive "Residential Kits" are available and special accessories maybe required depending on the angle and pitch of the panels.

If I can be of any help please do not hesitate to contact myself through our website ionicsolar.com If I help, then I am happy.

(And if you wish to pay for advertising space, then the board owners are happy too. till then, we don't allow clickable links in messages.) Moderator.

A salesman trying a silly sales pitch and can't even spell - that is really sad. Everything in the sales pitch is pure BS to try to get your bucks for nothing useful.

[Naptown]

Mike here uses a Mr Clean thingy with an RO rinse. Just water. For the stubborn stuff you could use what I use for some second story windows which consists of a cleaning bonnet and squeegee that screws on the end of a painters extension pole. This will allow some scrubbing. Finish with a clean rinse ( preferably with RO water or at least water from a softener)

[rubiks1]

This is what I do for my Kyocera 200 watts KC200gts. If its summer then 8-10 am I will get up on the roof with a warm bucket of soapy water, car cleaning brush that its sections can be extended and a hose, hose down the panels, dip the brush in the water, scrub rinse and done. For my 26 panels it takes me 30-40 mins depending on how much bird crap is on them.

[Mike90250]

Washing, do it early in the AM, while they are still wet and dewy, and have the work of soaking the dirt off is already done.
And the panels are still cool, and won't get thermal shocked from 160F to 50F when you douse then with cold water !