However, a heavy downpour for several days together can damage the panels. The heavier the rainfall, the higher is the risk of damage to your solar panels. If it has been raining heavily for a few days or several hours together, you can expect some damage to your panels. Heavy rains could break the boards and tear off the wirings of the panels.
Though they are more effective in direct sunlight, they can still operate when the light is reflected or covered by the clouds. The rains help make panels operate more effectively by washing away the dust and dirt. The more the energy you generate during sunny days will offset the energy you use during the night and when it is raining.
Rainfall will not be enough to keep your solar panels optimally clean and capable of producing energy in line with their maximum efficiency standards. Rainwater does not clean solar panels thoroughly. Every month that your panels are cleaned purely by rainwater alone, they will lose roughly 1% in overall efficiency.
The more the energy you generate during sunny days will offset the energy you use during the night and when it is raining. An average solar panel can generate 30% to 50% of its optimum capacity during cloudy days. Furthermore, they can generate 10% to 20% of their capacity if there is heavy rain. Let us consider an example for better understanding.
While solar panels achieve peak performance in direct sunlight, they do generate electricity in cloudy and rainy conditions. This remarkable adaptability ensures that adopting solar energy is a robust and reliable choice, even in regions that experience diverse weather patterns. Is Direct Sunlight a Must for Solar Panels to Function?
Scientists have developed a model of a hybrid solar system – The Polymer solar panel and The Graphene Solar panels, which help generate electricity from rain. The Polymer solar system is designed to combine the heterojunction silicon cell and a TENG device.