Dust & Pollen
The stuff you'd have to climb up to see.
Fine agricultural and road dust settles between rain events and doesn't rinse off on its own. One finger drag is usually enough to show how much is up there.
Spot-free residential solar panel cleaning across San Luis Obispo County. Water-fed pole and deionized water only — no detergents, no pressure washers, no warranty risk.
After we clean
Before
A real SLO home — left: before we cleaned. Right: after.
San Luis Obispo County pays PG&E ~30¢ per kWh — one of the highest rates in the country. Dirty panels quietly skim 10–20% off your production. A cleaning recovers nearly all of it. Move the slider to see what your home would save.
Typical SLO home is 15–25 panels. Quick count from the driveway or sidewalk usually works.
Drag the handle — or tap anywhere on the image.
A thin film of dust, salt, or pollen can cut production by up to a quarter — silently, month after month.
Peer-reviewed research (Duke, IIT Gandhinagar) found cleaning a soiled array can raise output by up to 50%.
Our DI system rinses to near-zero total dissolved solids, compared to 100–400 ppm in tap water. No spots. No scaling.
SLO County is tough on solar. Dry summers cake panels in dust, ocean air leaves salt scale, and year-round birds cover them in droppings that cook onto the glass. Rain doesn't fix it.
Fine agricultural and road dust settles between rain events and doesn't rinse off on its own. One finger drag is usually enough to show how much is up there.
Bird droppings are acidic and bake onto hot glass. Even four drops on a single panel can cut its output 12–33%. Hand-washing without the right method makes it worse.
Morro Bay, Cayucos, Pismo — anywhere near the coast, salt and dissolved minerals leave a frosted film. Only deionized water pulls it off without leaving new spots behind.
The method your panel manufacturer recommends — and the one backed by the research on panel longevity.
Dial (408) 636-3014. We'll ask a few quick questions: how many panels, roof pitch, access, and whether you've ever had them cleaned. You'll know the price before we book.
We arrive on time with the DI filtration system, carbon-fiber pole, and soft-bristle brush head already prepped. We clean early morning or late afternoon so your panels never get thermal-shocked. You don't need to be home.
Your panels dry to a spot-free finish. You notice it in your monitoring app within days. We recommend a maintenance cadence based on your home's site — usually every 6 to 12 months in SLO County.
Price depends on panel count, roof access, and how long it's been since the last clean. No surprises. No upsells.
From the vineyards in Paso to the bluffs at Shell Beach — wherever there are solar panels on a home in SLO County, we come clean them. Same rates from edge to edge. If you're unsure, call — we'll confirm in ten seconds.
Most homes in SLO County benefit from a clean every 6 to 12 months. If you're near agriculture, dirt roads, heavy tree cover, or a coastal salt zone, lean toward six months. We'll recommend a cadence on the phone based on your home.
Regular tap water carries dissolved minerals — calcium, magnesium, silica — that get left behind as spots and slowly build into a limescale film that blocks light. DI water rinses to effectively zero residue, protecting panel transmittance over the long term.
No. DI water, soft bristles, and low flow pressure are what most panel manufacturers specifically call out as approved methods. The things that can void a warranty — abrasive pads, pressure washers, harsh detergents, walking across panels — are exactly what we avoid.
Not usually. We just need outdoor water access and a clear approach to the roof line. We'll handle access ourselves — whether that's from the ground with our pole or a ladder setup for trickier roofs. If you want to meet first, we're happy to schedule around you.
Bird droppings, hardened dust, sap, and salt crust are exactly what our brush-and-DI method is built for. Heavy cases get a longer wet-down to soften the stain before we brush. If something genuinely won't come off safely, we'll tell you — we don't damage your panels chasing it.
A typical home array runs 30 minutes to an hour start to finish. Bigger systems take a little longer — we'll give you a time window when you call.
We focus on residential homes only. That's how we keep the quality consistent and the scheduling flexible for homeowners.
You can, and it helps knock off loose dust — but a garden hose sprays the minerals in your tap water directly onto hot glass, which is how mineral spotting starts. If that's been your routine for a while, a proper DI-water clean will remove what's built up.
One call, a quick quote, and we're on the schedule. Most homes clean in under an hour. Ask anything — we'll tell you straight.
Residential service · All of San Luis Obispo County · Free quotes by phone