"thumper" wrote in message ...

On 6/26/2012 10:31 PM, Califbill wrote:

Major problem with home and other solar panels is the degradation over
time. The wattage output declines significantly over 5 years.

About 0.5% per year. Major problem?


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Depends on the panel type. I think most cheap panels are C-SI which has up
to 10% the first year and .5 to 5% the second year. Multicrystaline is an
about 0.5%. A lot of the actual degradation is not the silicon part of the
panel and UV absorption but the glass covering the panel. Environmental
etching is the main problem.