5 Easy Ways to Protect Your Solar Panels from Damage and Theft

Harvesting solar energy has numerous benefits - you lower your carbon footprint, save thousands of dollars on electricity bills, and also increase your home’s value. What’s more, your savings on bills will meet the costs of installing your solar power system.

Solar power systems are also low on maintenance and extremely durable. That being said, they do require protection from the elements, wild animals, and thieves. Don’t let this worry you. That’s why you need a solar panel fence. If you’re planning to install solar panels on your property or have installed them recently, you might be wondering how to protect your solar panels from theft. The good thing is, you’ve come to the right place.

Here’s how to keep solar panels from being stolen or damaged.

1. Fence Your Property

A simple chain link fence with locked gates can protect your property from most intruders and thieves. So if you don’t have a fence, get a chain link fence installed right away. You can also choose to install other security equipment like cameras and intrusion detectors.

Considering that many people in High Desert areas choose to install solar panels on the ground, a good idea is to install a chain link solar panel fence behind the panels to support and secure them. Adding a gate to this would make it easy to get in for maintenance, but be sure to install locks on gates and keep gates locked at all times.

2. Note the Serial Numbers

Solar panels come with serial numbers and can help you track your panels in case of theft, so do ask for them during the installation. If you’ve already installed the panels, get in touch with the solar panel company and ask them for the serial numbers of panels you’ve purchased.

3. Let Your Insurance Company Know

If your property is already covered, you may be in luck; chances are, you’ll only have to tell your insurance company that you’ve invested in solar panels and a solar panel fence and they’ll cover them for no extra costs. Even if they do raise your premium, at least you won’t have to spend sleepless nights thinking about your solar panels being stolen.

4. Have Them Properly Installed

While installing solar panels can be time-consuming, taking them down is not. As such, ensure that installers follow recommended guidelines and make use of mounting holes at the back of modules to install solar panels. This is because solar panels installed using the clips on the edges are easy to take down.

5. Keep Them Under Lock and Key

Apart from having solar panels installed properly, do keep them under lock and key to prevent theft. To lock panels down, use customized nuts and bolts that won’t open with regular screwdrivers and wrenches. Don’t forget about locking your solar panel fence too. This way, you don’t have to worry about how to keep your solar panels from being stolen.

Conclusion

Protecting solar panels isn’t difficult. By following these simple steps, you can ensure that your investment is properly protected. So, if you’re still wondering how to protect solar panels from theft, you can be sure that at All American Fence Erectors, we have helped many family in the High Desert, including Hesperia, Victorville, Apple Valley, Oak Hills, Phelan, and Pinon Hills, protect their solar panels by installing a cost-effective, yet extremely durable chain-link solar panel fence. So don’t delay. Take these steps and have peace of mind knowing that your solar panels will be protected. Give us a call today for a free estimate.