Generally, solar panel systems do not need much maintenance, this is due to the fact that there are no moving parts in the system.
Since the solar inverter is one of the main components of your solar system, today we are doing to discuss solar panel inverter maintenance and what you can do to make it last longer.
Why do you need to inspect your solar inverter so often?
Like in any highly electrical system the life span of a solar inverter is directly related to the amount of maintenance does it receive. The main enemy here is moisture, if the electricity is flowing in the possible presence of moisture, the risk of corrosion increases too.
Main issues with solar inverters
In the solar industry, we have two types of solar inverters that can be installed at your home, the string inverters and the micro-inverters.
String inverters connect a group of panels, called a string, to one inverter. This means that you may have a set of panels all feeding into the same large inverter.
By contrast, micro-inverters are an integrated part of each individual panel (on the back of each solar panel), eliminating the need for a larger single inverter.
When there is a problem is the inverters you will notice the reduction in the amount of solar energy produced, you can notice this by using solar reading of the meter or if you are using string inverters they will give you an error code, the error code depends on the inverter manufacture.
How often I should clean my solar inverter?
I will recommend performing a check-up on your solar inverter at least once per year, just do a full inspection and cleaning of the inverter in case of dust and moisture.
Also, you can check how well the electrical connections are working and if there are loose ones make sure you tighten them up lastly replace any part that is found to be failing.
Make sure you make electrical testing to confirm that the energy produced is near to the amount of solar energy you are expecting from your solar panels, if not find out what is the issue and fix it.
Can I clean solar inverters myself?
Solar inverters carry a lot of electricity and as I always tell my students, electricity is the best servant to have but a very cruel master. One wrong connection can cause fire, or even cost life, do not try this if you do not have experience with electricity. Hire a professional.
Conclusion
That is it, those are my solar panel inverter maintenance tips and opinion, my recommendation is you should do it at least once a year and if you’re not an electrician, hire a pro. Thank you for reading.