Solar Panels Hail Damage Sydney

Since 2011 we ve had some massive hail storms in brisbane.

Solar panels hail damage sydney.

There s a severe hail damage resistance test which tests panels for cricket ball sized hailstones. This included our black mountain science and innovation park. Although made from laminated glass hail falling between 30 100km is hard to withstand. The cleanup after the storm can be traumatic enough for homeowners tenants and property managers let alone dealing with tradespeople and insurance companies.

Solar panels and hail damage can happen in the blink of an eye. Sydney s catastrophic hailstorm happened on thursday the damage bill said to top 125 million. Tennis ball sized hailstones smashed into homes and cars in sydney s west while golf ball sized stones battered the city s inner suburbs during the savage storm. How to check your solar panels for hail damage.

Only one module out of the 3 168 solar panels on nrel s research support facility sustained damage. This can result in shattering of the panels or even micro cracks. Solar panels storm damage and micro cracks. Back in 2011 the smaller 200w panels were the go.

One minute the sun is shining bright across the lone star state then suddenly debris the size of golfballs rattles down and wreaks havoc that s often expensive and stressful to repair. Thankfully no one was injured but 65 glasshouses and several solar panels were destroyed. Solar panels are rated using two class systems. The larger panels being used now have a larger area of unsupported glass which makes them more susceptible to shattering.

Lg panels for example promise to withstand hailstones of up to 28mm in width and frost of 40 degrees without cracking. Solar panels need to be able to withstand 25mm diameter hailstones weighing 7 53 grams traveling at a velocity 23 metres per second 82 8 kilometres per hour per international standards iec61215. Many homes in berowra heights sustained damage when a. Hail storms in sydney often come out of nowhere with common casualties around the home being damage to rooftop solar hot water tubes solar panels and water heater storage tanks.

How much of that damage is to rooftop solar pv. The better the quality of the panel and its components the less likely it is to be damaged by impact. Your solar panels are on the front line during a hail storm. With hail season in full swing protect your solar panels from hail damage to keep their energy supply in working condition.

The thunderstorms brought hail to parts of sydney with the bureau of meteorology recording hailstones up to eight centimetres in diameter. In the last 7 years i d guess we ve replaced 10 panels due to hail shattering the glass. The last massive hail storm in sydney was in 1999 but there were hardly any solar panels then. Many homes and businesses suffered damage to roofs awnings and solar panels while vehicles were dented and had windscreens destroyed.