I have seen fine wire netting above solar panels on fixed locations . About 14mm squares . ? Figure that is the size big enough to filter the larger hail . Yet still lets sun light through .

You have a point Bill B, but I reckon they are mostly two different products. Only a few will have house panels mounted, most will opt to the lower voltage panels and cheap ones at that.

I have had solar panels on my house (and lots of them) for close to 9 years. Also solar on the van for 2 years. Both have been through hail storms & not any marks on them. All are still working perfectly.

NSW seems to be the one place that has the huge hail Aus-Kiwi. Had them here as big as Tom Bowler marbles but that is nothing like NSW gets

Thanks for your input everyone. I will think about this a little longer. The biggest problem for me will be getting up to cover them anyway.



Keep Safe on the roads and out there.

I also lay awake for hours every night like Dougwe. Worrying about the effect of hail on my solar panels.

I have NO viable protection plan yet.

Wire netting is a possible I guess, but PLZ keep the ideas coming!

Stay safe

Gday...

what might help is if some forum member who reads this thread can let us know they had hail damage to their solar panels.

It seems no-one has yet come forward with a tale of damage as yet.

cheers - John

Dougwe wrote:

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That in it self might have answered my question Rocky 

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 Hi Dougwe 

I thought you were jesting from the subject heading  But I see it has a serious purpose. I live in Newcastle in the insurance area with major claims on hail damage  Some insurance companies issue hail warning to our mobiles !! I have had panels on the roof for a long time and on the current MH which sits outside, for some years. No damage in that time and I have not seen any around. Plenty of cars though.

I got caught out last year in my new car when hail hit. It took me 10 minutes to find a tree to park under due to the traffic and chaos at peak hour. I was horrified and thought from the noise inside the car, that it would be ruined, but on examination there were no dints It must have been just under the size need for damage. Hail smashing on the screen in front of me. So it may not be as serious as you fear. I would not be casual about hail but having first hand experience in it, literally, I am a bit happier. I would not have been on the road if I knew it would hail but it came very quickly and no time to react.

Jaahn  

Been out in hail storms . It gets down to being in the wrong place at the right or wrong time . Thereâs not much you can do other than turn the panels horizontal or park under cover . Then you have to think about the replacement V making then hail proof ? The cost may be similar ?

Hi Doug

Three or four years ago there was a large hailstorm in Whyalla and my neighbour has an array of solar on his roof facing WNW.
The storm came from that direction and hit us full on with hail the size of somewhere between a golf ball and a cricket ball.
Our front yards were white with ice after the event and there was damage to our roller doors and verandah roofing but no damage to his solar panels.
I concluded at the time that those panels are tough "sons a' guns"

Why not talk to a solar panel installation company or an insurance company and ask them of the incidence of replacing panels after a hailstorm.
This may not remove the worry but if by chance they are damaged then insurance would cover it in most cases I would imagine, rather than climbing up there to fix a cover.
You may not even get time to cover them as some storms can hit pretty quickly.

In any case, if you are climbing up there then take it easy. No panel is worth an injury or worse.

Dickodownunder wrote:

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Hi Doug

Three or four years ago there was a large hailstorm in Whyalla and my neighbour has an array of solar on his roof facing WNW.
The storm came from that direction and hit us full on with hail the size of somewhere between a golf ball and a cricket ball.
Our front yards were white with ice after the event and there was damage to our roller doors and verandah roofing but no damage to his solar panels.
I concluded at the time that those panels are tough "sons a' guns"

Why not talk to a solar panel installation company or an insurance company and ask them of the incidence of replacing panels after a hailstorm.
This may not remove the worry but if by chance they are damaged then insurance would cover it in most cases I would imagine, rather than climbing up there to fix a cover.
You may not even get time to cover them as some storms can hit pretty quickly.

In any case, if you are climbing up there then take it easy. No panel is worth an injury or worse.

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Thanks Geoff. It looks more in favour of not to worry too much about a cover up job. It's not so much the insurance, it's the inconvenience. 

 

Would Solar panel on your caravan be covered by insurance ,They are on your home insurance some times we have too much time on our hands and use it to worry

The fire in Tee Pee is ok . Just the floors suffer ..

Dickodownunder wrote:

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I would imagine that if the aluminium teepee was in a hailstorm then the roof and side panelling may suffer damage that in most cases be covered by insurance.
One would hope that the solar panels are covered as well but I do relate to Doug's concern regarding the inconvenience

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 +1 , Doug the teepee will cop it badly too if the hailstones are that big that they smash the panel glass , we had a car written off in a bad hailstorm back in 1990? , we were having dinner at a hotel at the time and all we could do was watch as all the cars outside were destroyed, then the hotel ceiling starting leaking water everywhere as its roof had got smashed .... what a night !