The need to shift to renewable energy means that the use of solar panels in Scotland is increasing at a constantly accelerating rate.
Solar panels are a simple and cost effective way for businesses to switch from the national grid and reduce their carbon footprint. But as this is Scotland, the weather can be far from ideal and solar panels that are exposed to the Scottish weather require scheduled inspection and maintenance to ensure that they are operating at their peak efficiency.
A typical solar panel is only around 15% efficient and while technology is constantly looking to increase this percentage, it does mean that any damage or blockages caused by vegetation growth can a have noticeable drop off in energy generating performance.
Weather damage
Just like we conduct building maintenance inspections with our drones and roofing inspection after a storm, weather damage such as heavy hail can damage a solar panel. Solar Panel Maintenance can spot this damage quickly so that you can get your solar panel repaired faster.
Water damage
Solar panels are waterproof but just like a double glazed window, the seals around a solar panel can fail over time. Solar panel maintenance with drones can spot the deteriorating of this early meaning you can get it repaired or replaced faster.
Vegetation growth
From scratches on the surface of the solar panel caused by branches to leaves covering part of the solar panel, vegetation can cause issues with solar panels that requires regular maintenance. A scheduled drone inspection as part of your solar panel maintenance can spot and issues quickly.
Solar panels on a standard domestic roof may only take 10 minutes to check over but on large scale commercial buildings, the inspection of solar panels takes a lot longer. Regular maintenance of solar panels can be completed faster with a drone. Equipped with thermal imaging, we can inspect your solar panels from scratches, heat loss and vegetation cover issues.
By tackling solar panel maintenance early, you can save considerably on maintenance and repair bills in the future.
Aerial Drone Surveys
Aerial drone surveys are a vital part of the regular maintenance and inspection of key elements of the energy sector. Previous to the use of drone surveys, visual inspections were conducted by teams of rope access and ‘at height’ access crews and would require costly scaffolding set up and crucially, production downtime to conduct the surveys safely. This all adds up to high inspection costs.
Drone surveys are changing this because they can provide a superior inspection service, capturing data from vantage points that are simply not possible with conventional methods. All while being faster, safer and more cost effective than traditional methods. And the icing on the cake, no need to shut down production.
At Balmore, we are an award winning drone survey provider covering land, sea and aerial inspection. Based in Glasgow, we cover all of Scotland and the North of England. We have always reinvested in our team and our equipment, knowing that as the needs and demands of the energy sector grow, so too does the need to maintain regular and detailed inspections of key energy sector facilities. We have positioned ourselves as one of the leading drone survey providers in the country focused on key inspection and survey services for the main sectors of energy, utilities and infrastructure.
We have tailored our services to meet the unique demands of our clients and whether it is one of drone survey requirements or scheduled maintenance inspections that are required for safety and insurance purposes, we are both dynamic and flexible in how we can offer our services.
Find out more
The easiest way to find out more about our drone surveys and how they can be used for solar panel maintenance get in touch. You can speak directly to one of our inspection team to discuss your unique requirements and we can answer any and all questions you may have.
