Dirt accumulation on solar panels can pose a number of serious risks to the integrity of the solar panels.. In addition to the loss of power due to blocked irradiation, there is also the possibility of hot spots that can even cause fires.

Performance loss and hot spots due to the effect of dirt on solar panels

Dust, dirt and small stones raised by the wind, branches and leaves, animal droppings, is the dirt that can normally be found on  photovoltaic modules. When the installation is not properly maintained, this dirt accumulates causing a blockage of solar irradiation due to the opacity it produces in the cells where it is located, often in the lower corners of the panels where it tends to move.

The lower cells end up having a much higher temperature generating hot spots, which can cause major problems in the panels as we explained in this article: Hotspot Effect: Hot spots in solar panels. This accumulated dirt can reduce the performance between 5% and 15% approximately, which extended over time can be a large amount of energy lost.

Cleaning and split cells against dirt in solar panels

To avoid the loss of power due to the accumulation of dirt and the possibility of causing hot spots, the most effective way is to perform a good maintenance of the  photovoltaic panels  with a cleaning of the same. In this other article we explain how to clean solar panels.

In addition, split-cell solar modules have a lower power loss due to their technology which temporarily and until the panel is cleaned can avoid further reduction in performance by behaving better in the presence of dirt.