Maintenance of photovoltaic modules on roofs without spacing

Text written in collaboration with Marília Braga, Electrical Engineer, PhD student and researcher at the UFSC Photovoltaic Laboratory

In photovoltaic installations on rooftops, it is very common to come across situations in which maintenance and cleaning services are difficult, especially when there is no spacing between the rows of modules.

Often the way in which photovoltaic modules are installed does not allow the installer to walk between them – and walking on them is not permitted under any circumstances. 

With this in mind, a simple, cheap and very efficient solution was created. It is a wooden board, with metal angles, which basically functions as an elevated platform. 

The installer positions this platform on the modules, without contact with them, so that the angles rest on the structural profiles (and not on the module frames). This way, it has the freedom to move around the system without damaging the photovoltaic modules.

From an electrical point of view, this technique has many advantages. According to Marília Braga, electrical engineer, doctoral student and researcher at the UFSC Photovoltaic Laboratory, the most common and serious problems we find in photovoltaic systems integrated into roofs are precisely hot spots caused by cracks in the photovoltaic cells, which generally arise when stepping on the modules. . 

Many installers are mistaken when they think they can step on the modules. The glass on the front is, in fact, resistant and does not break easily. However, in the case of traditional crystalline silicon modules, the photovoltaic cells encapsulated inside are very thin and not at all flexible, which makes them very sensitive and not very resistant to mechanical stress; that is, easy to break. 

The solution shown in the images, in addition to being accessible due to its low cost, allows adequate maintenance of the photovoltaic system even in installations in which the rows of modules are installed very close together, with no free spaces on the roof.

Pay attention to necessary care

As with any installation or maintenance service for photovoltaic systems, it is important to emphasize that operators must wear appropriate PPE and follow all safety standards. 

Furthermore, the platform, which functions as a “bridge” between the two edges of the module, needs to be made with wood of suitable thickness and resistant to the weight of a person, as well as the metal angles.