15 May 2026

Clean your solar panels yourself or have it done? Decision guide

At ground level you can safely do it yourself: on the roof it becomes a different story. How to weigh it up.

The honest dividing line is not the dirt, but the location. Panels at ground level, on a carport or on a safely walkable flat roof you can clean yourself. If they sit on a pitched roof or at height, it is work for a professional: the fall risk is out of all proportion to what a cleaning visit costs.

If you do it yourself, use osmosis or demineralised water (sold by the jerrycan at the DIY store) and a soft brush or squeegee. Ordinary tap water dries with limescale stains, and that haze is exactly what you wanted to remove. What you never use: a pressure washer, aggressive detergents or a dry, abrasive brush: those can damage the coating or the sealing. Also clean at a cool moment of the day: cold water on hot glass is asking for stress in the panel.

The professional brings more than a long pole: an osmosis-water system, soft rotating brushes, fall protection and a trained eye for damage, loose cables or nesting material under the panels. For € 4 to € 8 per panel (€ 75 to € 175 for an average home) that work is done and insured; if something looks off, you hear it immediately and a yield check is the logical next step.

The level-headed summary: ground level and walkable flat roof = doing it yourself is fine, pitched roof or height = have it done. In the latter case always compare a few quotes and set them against the price index: for the same roof, prices vary widely.