THE LIFESPAN OF SOLAR PANELS
Solar energy is one of the most widely used renewable energies today. It is a clean energy, free of pollution and that, in addition, allows us to save. For this to be effective and have maximum performance, photovoltaic panels must be located in places where the sun is directly, making the most of its capacity.
HOW LONG DO SOLAR PANELS LAST?
To calculate the useful life of solar panels, the environmental factor must be taken into account, since they are exposed for a long time to cold, heat and rain. It is estimated that the average useful life of solar panels is 25-30 years. After that time, it will not stop working, but will progressively decrease its performance, but maintaining a production of more than 70%.
The nominal power of solar panels, whether monocrystalline or polycrystalline, degrades by about 0.5% per year. Panels that have a thinner film will lose their qualities faster than the others.
As we have said before, environmental factors are the main enemy of solar panels. Its surface can be covered by dust or particles and therefore its cleaning is important, so that they are free of any element.
In general, most manufacturers test their panels to confirm that they can withstand wind, snow, and all kinds of weather conditions. Keeping panels in good condition can lead to a lower degradation rate each year and ensure longer performance.
The degradation of solar panels is inevitable, but to increase their useful life you can follow some recommendations such as:
Check solar panels regularly: carry out general maintenance on a frequent basis. In the maintenance of plants, incidents can be identified that may cause problems in the future such as soles or any other development.
Keep the panels free of objects that may be harmful: installers have to make sure that there are no obstacles such as large trees that can damage the solar panels.
After the useful life of the panels has elapsed, they can continue to produce electricity, but new ones can be replaced or installed if production is to be improved.
