Solar Panel and Hail? (1 Viewer)

[Dissent]

Just curious if anyone has experience with hail and their solar panel? how durable arw these things? I have a 100w Renogy panel.

 

[Pin_Head]

How often does it hail in Phoenix?

Tiny hail is not as bad as the baseball sized stuff.

 

[retrofive]

Let me google that for you:
"Rated for 1" hail at 52 MPH CONS"
Top 3 100W Solar Panels | Solar Shoppe

 

[retrofive]

How often does it hail in Phoenix?

Tiny hail is not as bad as the baseball sized stuff.

He could also move some place nicer.

 

[NLXTACY]

He could also move some place nicer.

Lol

 

[Dissent]

LOL, nicer than Hell? We get some solid hail storms now and then, weather around the country and world has been VERY odd lately, the boy's truck is outdoors and last time we got hail my panel safety popped to mind.

 

[Dissent]

I was also looking to those who have had real hail smack their panels to see how they have held up practically.

 

[Irish Reiver]

Just curious if anyone has experience with hail and their solar panel? how durable arw these things? I have a 100w Renogy panel.

Minor thread hi-jack about to happen....how have you mounted your panel? Any Chance of some photos.

 

[jaymar]

I suppose you could fashion a hardtop cover or use cushions pillows cardboard air mattress. Last gets you dual use, small size, light weight and portability. Editor's Choice!

 

[mingles]

I was also looking to those who have had real hail smack their panels to see how they have held up practically.

I work with solar for a living and your typical aluminum framed glass solar panel is quite durable. The strength resistance to impact is similar to a windshield. They are tempered glass, usually laminated to a Mylar substrate with the cells sandwiched in between. If they do shatter they will craze like auto glass except that the slivers are smaller than auto glass and glass splinters are plentiful. Gloves are a must when handling broken panels.

The 1" hail rating is standard across the industry. In real world terms, the three things that will shatter a panel are dropping it on its corner, twisting or flexing the glass out of its flat plane, and a hard impact with a sharp pointed object (kids throwing rocks, gunfire, or dropping a ratchet on them :<) .

As part of our standard product demo I regularly smack a solar panel with a 2x4 just to get people's attention and give them a visual as to the durability of a solar panel. Haven't broken one yet (that way ) in hundreds of demos. Another interesting point is that a shattered solar panel will still produce electricity just fine. Eventually water will get under the glass and cause corrosion that will shade the cells, and then they will stop making electricity. In a dry climate I've seen shattered solar panels still continue to produce power for many years in a broken state.

 

[Tools R Us]

Likely best to just keep it in the garage. If your really contemplating taking it outdoors, be aware that weather can cause damage to the whole rig! Things like hail can do more damage than even branch scratches, exposing it to the sun can fade, make plastics brittle, etc!

Maybe something like this. Make the cover easy to remove, simply take it off when you get to the show & shine, then after, quickly replace to prevent damage? No need for anything complicated, a sheet of carbon fiber backed by foam, light and simple?

I suppose you could fashion a hardtop cover or use cushions pillows cardboard air mattress. Last gets you dual use, small size, light weight and portability. Editor's Choice!

 

[Dissent]

Likely best to just keep it in the garage. If your really contemplating taking it outdoors, be aware that weather can cause damage to the whole rig! Things like hail can do more damage than even branch scratches, exposing it to the sun can fade, make plastics brittle, etc!

Maybe something like this. Make the cover easy to remove, simply take it off when you get to the show & shine, then after, quickly replace to prevent damage? No need for anything complicated, a sheet of carbon fiber backed by foam, light and simple?

 

[Dissent]

Minor thread hi-jack about to happen....how have you mounted your panel? Any Chance of some photos.

Used some 10" straps I had from Home Depot, I need to trim them down yet. Spaced them a bit with a nut and they sit just under the top of the Prinsu load bars. I rigged up a "Y" connector with dummy plugs on the passenger side to splice in a folding panel should I have the tent platform deployed and really need a solar charge. I have to replace the hardware from my initial mockup yet. No roll up panel in play yet, just future proofing it.

Here's some pics:

Top

Driver's Front

Driver's Rear

Passenger Side

Solar Y-Splice

 

[Dissent]

I work with solar for a living and your typical aluminum framed glass solar panel is quite durable. The strength resistance to impact is similar to a windshield. They are tempered glass, usually laminated to a Mylar substrate with the cells sandwiched in between. If they do shatter they will craze like auto glass except that the slivers are smaller than auto glass and glass splinters are plentiful. Gloves are a must when handling broken panels.

The 1" hail rating is standard across the industry. In real world terms, the three things that will shatter a panel are dropping it on its corner, twisting or flexing the glass out of its flat plane, and a hard impact with a sharp pointed object (kids throwing rocks, gunfire, or dropping a ratchet on them :<) .

As part of our standard product demo I regularly smack a solar panel with a 2x4 just to get people's attention and give them a visual as to the durability of a solar panel. Haven't broken one yet (that way ) in hundreds of demos. Another interesting point is that a shattered solar panel will still produce electricity just fine. Eventually water will get under the glass and cause corrosion that will shade the cells, and then they will stop making electricity. In a dry climate I've seen shattered solar panels still continue to produce power for many years in a broken state.

Thanks for some real information and feedback!

I figured as much but thought I'd shop it around to provide entertainment for everyone.

 

[Dave 2000]

I have never had issues with hail on my panels, but to be fair they have only been hit about three or four times in the past 5 years? Solar is used throughout Spain, houses, cars, factories and so forth. Some huge installations, taking up more space than six football pitches in one install, if they were susceptible to damage then they would not be used en mass.

regards

Dave

 

[Dissent]

That's what I figured but some of the major grapefruit sized hail I saw on a news report made me curious.

 

[Dave 2000]

The biggest hail seen here is a little larger that golf balls, I have seen the odd cracked windscreen, the biggest victims are the aluminium bonnets of Land Rovers, they suffer quite badly. Also given how cheap the panel are I would not be losing sleep over damage. One given to me has a crack but still knocks out it's rated amperage, so no big deal.

regards

Dave

 

[Heckraiser]

Lots of folks in my neighborhood have solar panels and we get at least one good hail storm per year. I don't think they take any protective action, and I haven't heard of any problems, but those are big residential units. I'd treat it the same way my wife and I tread the DD's... if its hailing, get out there and throw a quilt over it for ten minutes.

 

[Irish Reiver]

Used some 10" straps I had from Home Depot, I need to trim them down yet. Spaced them a bit with a nut and they sit just under the top of the Prinsu load bars. I rigged up a "Y" connector with dummy plugs on the passenger side to splice in a folding panel should I have the tent platform deployed and really need a solar charge. I have to replace the hardware from my initial mockup yet. No roll up panel in play yet, just future proofing it.

Here's some pics:

Top

View attachment 1442389

Driver's Front
View attachment 1442390

Driver's Rear
View attachment 1442391

Passenger Side
View attachment 1442392

Solar Y-Splice

Thanks dude. That's was great info. Very much appreciate you taking the time to grab the photos.

 

[Dissent]

No problem.