How Long Do Solar Panels Last?

Depending on the brand, performance of quality solar panels is usually guaranteed for 25 to 30 years. It’s a general rule, but it’s highly probable that your panels produce electricity for a much longer time.

Solar panels can last for up to 60 years. Manufacturers specify a 25 to 30 years guarantee because the panels work with maximum efficiency during that period. At the end of the 25-year warranty period, your solar panels should be generating between 75% and 90%% of their nominal output when new.

The first 25 – 30 years of your solar system are considered to be the most productive service life of the solar system – the modules will actually produce electricity for decades.

The panels mounted from new can generate electricity for up to 30 years. Solar inverters generally last 10-12 years and are usually replaced at least once during the lifetime of the modules.

How often do solar panels need to be replaced?

Household solar panels have a 25-year warranty, but there is no guarantee that they will produce the same amount of electricity duriomng service – that depends on irradiance, weather conditions and maintenance.

If you avoid physical damage to your solar panels and clean them regularly, they will continue to generate energy for many years beyond the 25-to-30 years of a typical solar panel.

It is important to buy solar panels and associated equipment with robust warranties. Many module manufacturers offer 10 to 12 years of equipment warranty on their modules to cover manufacturing defects.

Production warranties are longer and guarantee that your modules produce a certain amount of energy for your home.

In addition to ensuring that you maintain your solar panels according to the manufacturer’s instructions, you also need to remember that a bit of cleaning maintenance can extend the performance and life of your investment.

The best way to ensure that your solar panel system lasts for a long time is for your installer or service and maintenance provider to regularly inspect the system.

The inspection of your solar modules includes the inspection of all other equipment involved in the solar system, including the solar inverter and the aluminum mounting system.

If your solar system has been installed by an expert and you use panels of good quality, this inspection shouldn’t show anything out of the ordinary.

Does solar panel spoil?

You can do your bit to keep your solar panels clean and dirt-free, but a solar specialist will test the energy generation of the entire system, including the individual solar panels and the inverters, to make sure they are maintaining efficiency.

Note that while the efficiency of solar panels will decrease with time, your solar system is not going to suddenly stop working completely. Power generation will decrease gradually over the years.

For example, if your solar power system generated 40kWh of electrical energy a week when new, you might find this is reduced after a year to 39.8 kWh. 

The mean annual degradation rate of the solar panels is around 0.5%, so the energy generation of the solar system loses 0.5% per year.

This means the output after 25 years will be:

Power output when new 40kWh -(40kWh/week x (0.5/100) x 25) = 35kWh

35kWh is 87.5% of 40kWh.

Your panels should still work at about 90% of their original output after 20 years, but each manufacturer’s warranty will specify the details.

A study conducted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) examined the degradation rates of 2,000 solar systems around the world in different climates.

The findings included that monocrystalline panels produced before 2000 were degraded by 0.4% per year, which is less than half the rate used for warranties.

According to a 2012 study by NREL, the average degraded rate of a panel is between 0.5% and 0.8% per year.

The worst degradation rate is 0.8% per year, which is the benchmark you would expect, and the average degradation rate for a panel is o.5% per annum.

NREL Study PDF – NREL Solar Degradation Report — An Analytical Review

Assuming that the end of the life of a solar panel means that it can no longer generate any electricity at all, then the logical life of solar panels is about 200 years (0.5% x 200 years of degradation = 100%). Of course, the amount of power produced towards the end would be very little.

Why solar panels are bad?

With a  standard lifespan of 25-30 years, the panels installed at the start of the current solar boom will not be long before they’ll be retired. This will bring a kind of recycling crisis, as millions of panels will be replaced.

While more hours of direct sunlight help solar panels generate more electricity, modern modules are also more efficient at generating energy in low-light situations.

Power generation falls off for many reasons. For example, silicon cells develop micro-cracks, so electrical flow through the crystal begins to get harder.

As the resistance between the parts of a crystal lattice increases, the solar cells in your solar panels can no longer optimally convert sunlight into electricity and their efficiency declines.

What Causes A Solar Panel To Degrade?

Signs of a deterioration in the performance of solar panels are mostly efficiency losses (a reduction in production or lower power), or problems with the inverter or other components.

It’s also possible there is physical damage, such as cracks in the glass of the solar panel cover. As a panel loses power over the years, tiny cracks also form in the silicon of the solar cell (these are called ‘micro cracks’) and the electrical connections inside, and between, the cells deteriorate.

The sharp increase in cracks in the back wall – the plastic layer which protects and shields the back of a solar panel – can be attributed to the widespread use of certain plastics such as polyamide – but the reasons for their rapid degradation are unclear.

What are the 2 main disadvantages to solar energy?

Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have discovered small cracks in polyamide backsheets. It seems that interaction of these materials with the environment can accelerate the degradation process in solar modules.

Kurtz from NIST says module manufacturers are looking at every part of the solar panel, from the cells to the way encapsulations and adhesives are fabricated and applied, to try to slow the degradation rate.

Another factor that can accelerate how fast solar panels power reduces is the quality of the materials used to manufacture the panels.

Materials and components like solar glass, aluminum frames and the silicon PV solar cells used in the modules can give problems if the quality is low.

Thin-film solar panels, for example, exhibit a higher degree of initial degradation in the first 30 days, probably due to material quality.

Do solar panels ever have to be replaced?

Solar panels degrade with time, which means that their energy-generating potential is reduced and they produce less electricity for the same amount of sunshine, or irradiance.

Over time, solar modules decompose due to factors such as UV radiation, extreme temperature changes, pollution, undesirable chemical reactions in semiconductor materials and adverse weather events such as hail, slushy wind, ice, dust and salt.

Extremely cold and hot weather, moisture, snow and ice also contribute to the degeneration of solar module component.

Potential induced degradation (PID) occurs when different components of the same system have different voltages, such as the frame of a solar cell, causing electricity leakage.

PID degradation tends to damage solar cells and reduces the overall energy yield. This is because solar cells and modules are connected in long rows, or strings, to generate a high system voltage of up to 1,000 volts, which drives the solar inverter.

Poor connections between solar cell strands can reduce also energy production, since about 33% of all solar cells are connected by strips of conductors, solder joints and wires.

PID is an undesirable degradation effect of a solar panel caused by factors such as voltage, heat and humidity.

Table – How long do different brands solar panels last? Warranties compared

What Are The 2 Main Disadvantages To Solar Energy?

The idea of the advantages and disadvantages of solar energy from the perspective of homeowners is an important step in the research process when it comes to installing solar panels in your home.

Like other energy-efficiency products, solar panels offer clear advantages to homeowners who need to upgrade or reduce their electricity bills.

The highest return is the amount of free energy that solar panels produce in the long run; it is estimated that the average solar household gets 50% of its energy from solar panels.

In addition to other benefits of solar panels, the main advantage is that you will be able to generate your own electricity without becoming dependent on your electricity supplier, reducing your monthly energy bill accordingly.

Solar panels are expensive to buy and install, which translates into several years before the savings in energy costs match the initial investment.

Unlike other some other renewable energy sources that operate at night, solar panels at night are useless. You will have to rely on the local grid to get electricity at night unless you buy solar batteries to store excess electricity during the day for use at night.

Because solar energy is dependent on the sun, electricity is not generated at night, which requires storing the excess energy generated during the day and connecting it to an alternative source of electricity, such as the local grid.

If you are not connected to the grid, you need an energy storage system, the most common is a bank of lithium-ion batteries to store the energy that your solar panels produce during the day.

Battery storage systems are a common way of storing solar energy, but they are expensive – up to 30% of the cost of an off-grid solar system.

Off-grid solar energy systems can be used to generate electricity in areas without access to the grid, or power satellites in space.

Photovoltaic technologies, such as the solar panels used on the Chariot and Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) power plants, generate clean energy and make them two of the most eco-friendly energy sources we have today.

Are solar panels worth it?

By supplying your home with solar energy, you reduce the carbon footprint of your entire household and the overall environmental impact.

Solar energy not only promises security and independence at the national level, but solar panels installed in individual households provide electricity that is not dependent on being connected to a large grid.

The sun is a powerful source of energy, and while we may not be able to gather even a fraction of that energy, harnessing that energy and installing solar panels can make a significant difference to the planet.

The cost of producing solar panels has been falling for many years, and financial incentives have made solar energy attractive to homeowners.

The initial cost of solar energy can be worthwhile for small households, cabins and campers, especially if you buy a 300 watt solar panel kit and install it yourself.

However, there are some drawbacks: solar energy works best on a roof, so it is not ideal for moving outdoors in every location (shading); upfront costs can be expensive ; savings can be small ; your electricity bill can be higher than first thought and it can be difficult to find a quality local installer.

This can be an inconvenience in inner cities and other areas with limited space, but once you understand how solar panels work you will need to speak to a solar energy company to find out what works best for your home and local climate.

It is an investment that will pay off over time but it will take some years for the savings from solar energy to offset the initial cost of installing solar panels.

If you are building a new home or a new property, financing the system with your mortgage is an easy way to take advantage of solar energy without upfront costs.

The number of solar panels required to generate energy for an entire home can cost tens of thousands of dollars, resulting in the electricity they produce being more expensive than conventional energy sources.

On the other hand, solar panels are becoming more affordable as more efficient technologies are developed, to the point where solar energy can be more affordable than conventional coal, gas, nuclear, and hydropower sources, even with UN subsidies.

Do you really save money with solar panels?

In general, solar panel installation always save money. The amount of money saved depends on the home’s energy usage, the size and cost of the solar system and the irradiance in your location.

How many solar panels would it take to power a house?

As a general rule, between 20 to 30 solar panels would supply the needs of an average home using the average of 50 kWh per day.

Do you still have an electric bill with solar panels?

Most installed solar systems are grid-tied, which means they are permanently connected to the utility grid. During peak sun hours little or no electricity is taken from the grid.

If the solar panels are shaded by clouds, or at night, power is taken from the grid. The size of your electricity bill depends on how much power your system pushes back into the grid.

Can I walk on my solar panels?

Solar panels are very strong and can be walked on as long as they are properly installed on aluminum rails. However, keep in mind that the glass cover can be scratched and may contribute to a loss in efficiency.