Solar panels

[Millsy]

Had a customer ask if I can clean 16 solar panels on what I would call a low level roof . It’s a new customer and she said her last WC used to do them 3 times a year. Just have a couple a questions ,
1. Do I need a certain type of brush.
2. There’s 16 panels , it doesn’t look to be a difficult job and just wondered what sort of price to charge
3. Are solar panels pretty robust, I wouldn’t want to cause any damage. ?

 

[Pjj]

1. No any normal brush will do .
2. We have a minimum charge of £100 for the first 16 panels , others will obviously be different
3. Yes they are obviously don't drop stuff on them but they are difficult to damage , just clean like a window might need a bit more scrubbing though .
As a side point make sure your insurance covers you to clean solar panels just in case of any problems.

 

[Millsy]

1. No any normal brush will do .
2. We have a minimum charge of £100 for the first 16 panels , others will obviously be different
3. Yes they are obviously don't drop stuff on them but they are difficult to damage , just clean like a window might need a bit more scrubbing though .
As a side point make sure your insurance covers you to clean solar panels just in case of any problems.

. Thank you for the quick reply. Damn £100 for the first 16 I’m embarrassed to tell you what I was going to quote, glad I asked now.

 

[Pjj]

. Thank you for the quick reply. Damn £100 for the first 16 I’m embarrassed to tell you what I was going to quote, glad I asked now.

As I say some will obviously charge differently we used to charge £65 but with travel time and fuel expenses we now have a minimum charge of £100 surprisingly we have only had 3-4 say no . Some that need a scaffold tower and are covered in liken we charge £500 for and we have got every single one we have quoted as no one else will do them .

 

[Part Timer]

. Thank you for the quick reply. Damn £100 for the first 16 I’m embarrassed to tell you what I was going to quote, glad I asked now.

If they're nice and easy and she wants them doing 3 times a year why charge much more than you originally thought.
If she wasn't a regular customer and it was a one off job then by all means charge a high price.
Personally for a good regular customer and for an easy regular job I'd charge a price similar to an hourly window cleaning rate.

 

[K in Kent]

. Thank you for the quick reply. Damn £100 for the first 16 I’m embarrassed to tell you what I was going to quote, glad I asked now.

I wouldn't worry about the pricing mate. Pricing higher comes with time and experience and having a good established business so you can afford not to get jobs.
That takes time and alot of hard work, then perhaps....

 

[Deleted member 257]

£3/4 a panel is the going rate around here.

 

[Pjj]

My reasoning with pricing on solar panels is quite simple , it’s harder work , 99% of the time you need a much longer pole than for window cleaning which costs a lot more , generally they are only cleaned once or at most twice per year so it’s an add on job which should be priced higher , and if specifically travelling to do that job then again travel time and costs need to be taken into consideration why anyone would do it for regular window cleaning money just baffles me when I started off and needed the work I still charged more for one off jobs , each to there own but once you get a reputation for doing cheap work it’s difficult to move on as ones will recommend you to friends and family if you then try and charge more they will say you only charged so an so xx why is mine dearer , so start as you mean to go on , better to get 1 job at £100 than 5 jobs at £20 far less work , most could clean their own Windows if they put their minds to it but they cannot clean solar panels . As a guide we get around 95 % of all solar jobs we quote and the ones that are covered in liken and £500+ get every single job as no one will do them .

 

[scottish cleaning service]

I charge a ton because its usually a one off and just once a year. The other thing you must remember is during the year the customer will get their money back due to increased efficiency and the other thing is no one wants to do the job. I price high then if I get the job or don't get the job then its a win win situation because I don't really want the job. Paid 30p for a roll today so everything has went up quite a bit and our prices must reflect this.

 

[Millsy]

She’s a new customer that I’ve just done 1st clean for ( windows and doors) . She asked if I’d do the panels next clean and how much would it be, she said she has them done 3 times a year and did mention efficiency.

 

[Part Timer]

She’s a new customer that I’ve just done 1st clean for ( windows and doors) . She asked if I’d do the panels next clean and how much would it be, she said she has them done 3 times a year and did mention efficiency.

Ask her how much she was paying, she might have been paying pennies or fortunes

 

[Chris34]

My reasoning with pricing on solar panels is quite simple , it’s harder work , 99% of the time you need a much longer pole than for window cleaning which costs a lot more , generally they are only cleaned once or at most twice per year so it’s an add on job which should be priced higher , and if specifically travelling to do that job then again travel time and costs need to be taken into consideration why anyone would do it for regular window cleaning money just baffles me when I started off and needed the work I still charged more for one off jobs , each to there own but once you get a reputation for doing cheap work it’s difficult to move on as ones will recommend you to friends and family if you then try and charge more they will say you only charged so an so xx why is mine dearer , so start as you mean to go on , better to get 1 job at £100 than 5 jobs at £20 far less work , most could clean their own Windows if they put their minds to it but they cannot clean solar panels . As a guide we get around 95 % of all solar jobs we quote and the ones that are covered in liken and £500+ get every single job as no one will do them .

Out of interest, what are they like to clean? I've got customers who have them and I said I'd look into the possibility of cleaning them.

Do they bead like self cleaning glass? Also do you find you have to avoid the hot sunny days due to the water evaporating too quickly?

I think if I had solar panels, for me it would be the saving in efficiency as pretty much my only consideration. With them being up on the roof it's not as if they're noticeable if they get a bit of general dirt on them. So if the solar panels saved me say £1,000 per year on bills but to have them cleaned 3 times per year at £100 per time... well it doesn't really look that great, but if cleaning them meant that I saved more than £1,000 per year on bills then it would depend on how much more for me to decide how often I wanted them cleaned and how much I'd be prepared to pay.

 

[Part Timer]

Out of interest, what are they like to clean? I've got customers who have them and I said I'd look into the possibility of cleaning them.

Do they bead like self cleaning glass? Also do you find you have to avoid the hot sunny days due to the water evaporating too quickly?

I think if I had solar panels, for me it would be the saving in efficiency as pretty much my only consideration. With them being up on the roof it's not as if they're noticeable if they get a bit of general dirt on them. So if the solar panels saved me say £1,000 per year on bills but to have them cleaned 3 times per year at £100 per time... well it doesn't really look that great, but if cleaning them meant that I saved more than £1,000 per year on bills then it would depend on how much more for me to decide how often I wanted them cleaned and how much I'd be prepared to pay.

The OP said they were on a low roof and had been done regularly so these should be easy. The pitch of the roof makes a massive difference as shallow roofs you have to go much further back and then have to deal with the pole sagging against and therefore catching the gutters.
As for when to clean them it's very similar to doing conny roofs, you don't really want to be doing them on hot sunny days.

 

[scottish cleaning service]

I read somewhere that solar farms get them cleaned every 3 months so it must pay dividends. I clean mine in March/April time and spray my roof with biocide on the same day.

 

[Chris34]

The OP said they were on a low roof and had been done regularly so these should be easy. The pitch of the roof makes a massive difference as shallow roofs you have to go much further back and then have to deal with the pole sagging against and therefore catching the gutters.
As for when to clean them it's very similar to doing conny roofs, you don't really want to be doing them on hot sunny days.

Yeah understand about the pole sagging and the clearance etc. What's the glass actually like though, is it like normal window class or is it a self cleaning type glass? Also wondering how delicate they are.

 

[Part Timer]

Yeah understand about the pole sagging and the clearance etc. What's the glass actually like though, is it like normal window class or is it a self cleaning type glass? Also wondering how delicate they are.

Everyone I've cleaned is similar to glass, not delicate either. Never done them covered in lichen though

 

[Pjj]

Out of interest, what are they like to clean? I've got customers who have them and I said I'd look into the possibility of cleaning them.

Do they bead like self cleaning glass? Also do you find you have to avoid the hot sunny days due to the water evaporating too quickly?

I think if I had solar panels, for me it would be the saving in efficiency as pretty much my only consideration. With them being up on the roof it's not as if they're noticeable if they get a bit of general dirt on them. So if the solar panels saved me say £1,000 per year on bills but to have them cleaned 3 times per year at £100 per time... well it doesn't really look that great, but if cleaning them meant that I saved more than £1,000 per year on bills then it would depend on how much more for me to decide how often I wanted them cleaned and how much I'd be prepared to pay.

The water generally sheets , some are a smooth surface others are a grainy surface , we use hot water so it doesn’t evaporate like cold will on a hot panel but they will dry quicker on a hot day if they have liken on them they will be a pita especially with cold water , roof angle makes a big diff if it’s a shallow roof the pole will hit the gutters if steep it will be a lot easier . We have cleaned tens of thousands of solar panels on huge solar farms most are cleaned once or twise per year maximum it would need to be a very bad area to need cleaning more than once per year . I have customers that say they see up to 30% better efficiency after a clean others say it made no difference at all . So you pay your money and take a chance . We don’t do the solar farms any more as it was mind numbing work and we all hated it with a passion.cleaning panels once per year at £100 per clean should technically cost the home owner nothing in fact it should increase there efficiency so in effect they are benefiting from the clean , and getting more than the cist of the clean in extra output , but this isn’t an exact science as it depends on so many factors .

 

[Pjj]

Yeah understand about the pole sagging and the clearance etc. What's the glass actually like though, is it like normal window class or is it a self cleaning type glass? Also wondering how delicate they are.

Technically it’s self cleaning on most panels but we get a lot of bird poo on them down here and green algae which doesn’t come off by it’s self . They are very robust you would have to be very clumsy to damage them the glass is about 1/4 inch thick

 

[Chris34]

Cheers for the info fella's, there's a fair few houses now with them on so I think I'll look into it, all adds up and considering the outlay would just be a longer pole then it seems a good investment to the business.

The water generally sheets , some are a smooth surface others are a grainy surface

This grainy surface you talk of, is this a type of surface that is not like window glass? Grainy sounds like it would hold the dirt.

 

[Pjj]

Cheers for the info fella's, there's a fair few houses now with them on so I think I'll look into it, all adds up and considering the outlay would just be a longer pole then it seems a good investment to the business.



This grainy surface you talk of, is this a type of surface that is not like window glass? Grainy sounds like it would hold the dirt.

Yes it’s a rough surface but surprisingly doesn’t seam to to hold the dirt any more than windiw glass it’s almost like a non stick surface if that makes sense

 

[Millsy]

This is the job, looks pretty straight forward.