Solar Panel Repair in Spectrum, AZ

Haboobs are part of life in the Phoenix area, and when one rolls through Spectrum, Solar Panel Repair questions follow: is that brown film costing me power, and did the wind loosen anything? A haboob is a dust storm pushed by thunderstorm outflow. They can reach about 7,000 feet high and move at up to 45 mph, and Wikipedia notes they occur frequently in Arizona deserts around Phoenix. Spectrum homes are mostly from the 2000s, with a median build year of 2007, so many arrays here have been through a lot of storm seasons.

What a storm leaves behind

• A dust layer that cuts output until rain or a cleaning removes it
• Mud spots where a light shower hit a dusty panel and dried
• Debris such as palm fronds, leaves or trash caught under the array
• In rare cases, a lifted panel, a loose clamp or a cracked sheet of glass from flying debris

Should you wait for rain?

Monsoon rain sometimes rinses panels, but it often comes as a short burst that turns dust into mud streaks. Total rain in the Gilbert area is only about 9.2 inches a year. If output has not recovered within a week or two after a storm, a cleaning is usually worth it. Your monitoring app is the best guide: compare clear-sky days before and after.

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How we clean

We use purified water and soft brushes designed for solar glass. No pressure washers, no abrasive pads and no household detergents, all of which can damage the anti-reflective coating or the frame seals. We clean early in the day when the glass is cooler, because cold water on very hot glass is hard on it and dries into spots.

The check that comes with it

A cleaning visit gives us a chance to look at the array from the roof. We check that every clamp is tight, look for chipped or cracked glass, clear debris from under the low edge and note any bird activity. If a section of the array is still underperforming after cleaning, that is an electrical issue, and we test the strings to find it.

Second-story roofs

Where arrays sit on a second-story roof, a homeowner cannot safely reach them from the ground with a brush. That is when a professional cleaning makes the most sense. We set ladders and fall protection properly and stay off fragile tile where we can work from the edge.

Townhomes and shared roofs

Spectrum has a larger share of attached and multi-unit housing than much of Gilbert; only about 72% of units are detached single-family homes. If your array sits on a shared roof or one maintained by an association, check who is responsible for the roof before work starts. Call (602) 497-2583 after the next storm if your numbers drop.