Lightning strikes whether direct or indirect can result in both down time and expenses in identifying and replacing damaged parts.
Does lightening hitting solar panels damage it.
When it comes to solar panels there s one persistent myth which is that putting solar panels on your home can actually attract lightning to your home.
Solar farms are just big fields covered with conductive material.
Lightning is a common cause of failures in photovoltaic pv and wind electric systems.
Lightning damage the following solar panel came from a system that was struck by lightning somewhere and no longer works.
Right off the bat i ll give you the answer.
Since the metal panel frames and racking of the solar array are located on the roof the egc will direct a strike to the solar array to ground and may reduce additional damage to the building.
No lightning isn t attracted to solar panels and putting solar panels and the metal racking it requires on top of your roof doesn t increase your home s risk of getting hit by lightning.
The first thing to consider is how likely a lighting strike is.
In fact direct hits are rare.
As well as damaging the electronics in the box in the back of the panel where the connecting.
So it s no surprise that lightning activity and surge related over voltage abnormalities are identified as leading causes of solar project downtime.
If you want to protect your solar power system solar panels and solar inverter from lightning that is possible but it will cost extra.
Most electrical and electronic damage in both grid tie and off grid solar electric systems is not due to a direct hit.
What kind of damage can lightning cause.
Lightning can cause devastating damage to solar panels and protection needs to be considered during the design stages.
Your solar power system can be damaged by direct strikes or more likely voltages induced by nearby lightning strikes.
Here are some of the most cost effective techniques that are generally accepted by power system installers based on decades of experience.
Most damage occurs from nearby hits usually within a few hundred feet.
In the case of the solar industry the costs are found in damage that happens when lightning strikes the exposed panels along with the associated surge that the strike produces.
They re almost asking for a lightning strike which can damage or destroy solar panels inverters and other critical equipment.
