How often should PV panels and the inverters be checked or maintained

[beachlover]

I'm only asking out of curiosity
I am not an electrician or PV specialist
I'm just a consumer and I have panels on my roof and and inverter in the loft and something else in the consumer unit. (Noob)
I know nothing about them
The landlord got some government funding a few years back and put them on a whole bunch of properties.
I'm just wondering how often they should be checked or maintained. A boiler for example has to be checked yearly. Is there an legislation to say the PV panels and the other stuff should be checked?
Many thanks

 

[The Ghost]

So... The electrician came? and.... what happened I am sure we are all dying to know!

 

[beachlover]

So... The electrician came? and.... what happened I am sure we are all dying to know!

All documented on the OP

 

[The Ghost]

Ok scrap that just seen your answers in other thread.

 

[dmxtothemax]

No legislation dictating checks on solar.
But once a year check would be wise.
Doesn't even need an electrician,
Any competent person can do basic checks.
Solar panels may require a cleaning,
Inverters should be checked that they get correct cooling
I.E. the air vents are not blocked with dust.
basic stuff really !

 

[Gavin A]

No real need for checking beyond maybe every few years checking the inverter vents haven't got clogged up with dust. The inverter does an insulation resistance test on start up every morning so unless the inverter's showing a fault there's really no need for further regular testing beyond what would be needed anyway for landlord electrical testing regimes.

And the panels would be benefit from a clean every few years - probably something like between 4-8 year intervals depending on the levels of dirt that's building up.

 

[The Ghost]

I'm only asking out of curiosity

SO.... managed to burn your computer out yet?

 

[beachlover]

Yep
Another brand new machine bites the dust
Delivered on the 15th December
RMAd on the 19th Dec
Returned to me on the 29th Dec
It lasted one night and had no power by the 30th Dec
There is some wired chit going on in this house for shoo

 

[The Ghost]

wired chit

Shoo is some wired chit going on. Power quality analysis anyone?

 

[tlsambo]

We did a cleaning experiment on ours. with Solar Edge monitoring each panel we cleaned one every 6 months one every 2 months and left one dirty. 2 years we've seen less than 1/3 of a % difference, in fact the 6 monthly cleaned one is out performing the 2 month one. We have 15 Sunpower Panels with Solar Edge fitted by www.nakedsolar.co.uk in July 2015.

 

[dmxtothemax]

You don't HAVE to clean them !
Just check them say once a year,
if they look ok and are working ok, then leave them alone.
I was thinking more along the lines of leaves from a tree.
And similar stuff that could physically reduce the sun light.

 

[Cadgey123]

You don't HAVE to clean them !
Just check them say once a year,
if they look ok and are working ok, then leave them alone.
I was thinking more along the lines of leaves from a tree.
And similar stuff that could physically reduce the sun light.

Dust and build up with stop light passing into the panels. They do require cleaning and it does help, especially if there is a gain at the end.

 

[SpecialistEnergy]

I have looked into this in a bit of detail - if you are on the earliest tariffs then it makes sense to clean panels annually. If you assume loss at about 2% per annum which seems realistic to me, (though obviously it could be more in a dusty environment next to a road or farm). If you are on the later tariffs, but access is easy I would still do them every other year, if you can get your window cleaner to do it - much cheaper than getting a specialist and they use the same equipment (pole fed de-ionised water brushes)

 

[SpecialistEnergy]

@beachlover there is no legislation to say it should be done yearly - but you do have a responsibility to maintain both your house and solar system electrically speaking so that it is not a danger to other people. Obviously most people wait until something breaks before fixing - you will have to make up your own mind about what is appropriate. All I would say is that nearly all fires caused by Solar PV have been put down to installer error : ) usually poor wiring or incorrect selection of switchgear. Its very easy to check from inside the house, no need to get on the roof. I get asked for checks like this all the time.