Remove stuck down Solar Panel - HOW ?? (1 Viewer)

[Zebede4500]

My solar panel has given up and needs replacing, but how do I get the old, stuck down, semi flexible panel off without ruining the roof of my MoHo ??
Anyone done it, any advice (practical please).
Cheers

 

[funflair]

When I asked somebody promoting these panels he said "just stick another one on top"

 

[CamperJack]

One of the you tubers I follow has old ones that will not come off. He installed rigid ones over them.

Are you getting flexible replacements? I’m not an expert but rigid seem more reliable.

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[Geo]

I dont know but its suggested the lack of cooling air space under the flexi panels is what is causing premature failure .

 

[steve 6644]

A multitool for the plastic bits and a cheesewire saw for the mastic/sealant. Check this is completely possible before starting though.

 

[tonka]

If no cheesewire.. Use some strimmer wire

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[Richard n Ann]

Ours is rigid but it's a good idea to put it down on aluminium channel so it can easily be replaced. You buy special nuts that lock into it

 

[AndyPK]

Ours is rigid but it's a good idea to put it down on aluminium channel so it can easily be replaced. You buy special nuts that lock into it

I think there are some ‘special nuts’ on this forum.........!

 

[Jev88]

Another vote for framed panel. Easiest as you have wires already there?

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[Zebede4500]

Fitted new Framed panel and found removing original stuck down panel surprisingly easy. BUT, The mess under the old panel was horrendous. As there is no air circulation under the panel the heat generated has discoloured the gel coat to a toasty shade of brown !!!
Would never use a 'stuck down' panel in these circumstances again.

 

[pappajohn]

I dont know but its suggested the lack of cooling air space under the flexi panels is what is causing premature failure .

I suspected that since they first became available.

 

[Geo]

So why not warn every one !!!!
Its Pa Pa,s fault

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[Off da Grid]

When you get it off use one of those plastic tools for removing silicon bathroom sealant to remove the goo works really well.

 

[Swifter]

When I asked somebody promoting these panels he said "just stick another one on top"

Good advice .

 

[Mark and Mindy]

I had to remove our failed solar flexipanel and it was a horrendous job. I did buy a cheese wire cutter off Amazon but it didn't work. It was a steel wire which cut into the panel and also cut into the paint and the handles damagd the paint on the roof of van. Ours is a PVC with a corrugated roof so at least I could just work one corrugation at a time. I used a wallpaper scraper to get under the panel and break through glue working around the edges. I had to bend the panel up to get under it. Eventually I gripped one edge and peeled the whole thing off. I was worried about pulling the paint off the roof of the van but there was no problem with that. I removed all the excess adhesive using a a razor blade and a cloth with detergent and elbow grease. It's incredible how trepidation and fear for working on top of a ladder on the van roof goes out the window when you're stuck in to a job like this.

When I started I was hoping to get the panel off in good enough state to test it and find the fault

The photos show

• Job half done no going back.
• How am I going to clean this mess?
• Glue pattern for attaching the new panel.

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[funflair]

Good advice .

I went with "if thats the case I won't stick it on in the first place", read too many failures with stuck down.

 

[Campervan_man]

Try peeling it off from a corner.
Depending on what they have used to stick it down it may come off the roof easily.
If they have used Sikaflex it will be a battle.

 

[Mark and Mindy]

Try peeling it off from a corner.
Depending on what they have used to stick it down it may come off the roof easily.
If they have used Sikaflex it will be a battle.

If only it would have easily peeled off. I had to get enough of the panel clear of the roof to be able to grab it and pull. The least of my worries was that I was 2m up on a van roof with no safety.

My photo was taken in the morning after I left it overnight to have another go at it the next day. I wouldn't have had any hesitation driving the van with the the panel hanging off like that as it wouldn't budge.

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[Chris CM]

When my flexible panel failed I found that it had been stuck on top of another failed panel! I found that the top panel came of frighteningly easily but I couldn’t shift the bottom one! So I bridged over the existing panel with aluminium angle on the edge of my new rigid solar panel leaving an air gap.

 

[PeteH]

I purchased a flex panel for the last MoHo. When it arrived I discovered that th connector was on the rear of the panel and thus it would not stick direct to the roof. Solved by sticking it to 3 lengths of 1" alloy Chanel I had sculling about in the garage and the stuck those to the roof using Sikaflex. In so doing of course I created an air gap underneath. 2 years of use before sale with no issues.

 

[mitzimad]

my son has had 2 flexi panels fail the latest one a year old i wouldnt touch one with a barge pole

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[Garry - June]

Having done this previously the other big issue you will face is you probably have no idea what is underneath unless you put the panel on in the first place....it may just be a few dabs of sealant/adhesive...or it may have a whole tube spread all over the roof so if you dont know...or you do know there is lots of adhesive i would leave well alone because trying to get it all off is a nightmare...better to just put another on top...or better still a rigid as others have said....they are far better and more durable than flexi's...

 

[gwyntaxi]

When I asked somebody promoting these panels he said "just stick another one on top"

I think I’d be inclined to agree, as you can appreciate solar panels are usually stuck with sikaflex which is not intended to be removed very easily,
I’d stick one on top and not risk damaging the wafer thin roof panel, or if you must try either piano or guitar strings if you can get a start under it, or a very sharp flexible knife and aa lot of care.

 

[TheBig1]

My favourite removal tool is a long thin serrated bread knife. Nice and flexible and cuts through sikaflex with ease. Or for big satellite dish plates, I have an old 60cm hacksaw blade used with a cloth for a handle

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[Dbrain]

My solar panel has given up and needs replacing, but how do I get the old, stuck down, semi flexible panel off without ruining the roof of my MoHo ??
Anyone done it, any advice (practical please).
Cheers

i have jist replace my flexi i re moved it by using a multi tool with a sharpe flat blade went all the way around and just pull it up and kept on cutting

 

[DaveandJen]

Hope this helps. Earlier this year I moved onto the last bit of internal winter decorating in our place before the good weather and virus arrived and being a small room expected to be in and out in a couple of days, just remove a wooden feature rail that was stuck to the walls and emulsion the walls and ceiling plus gloss on the door frames. I got the wooden feature rail off the walls easy but it left behind the adhesive and backing board in places which was near imposable to remove after trying white sprit, thinners etc. After trying a number of other products I found the sticky label remover in the link below worked on the adhesive after a few coats and allowed me to just lightly scrape away without damaging the plaster so hopefully may work the same on the adhesive holding your solar panel down. Good Luck.

Amazon product ASIN B000IU3VSA

 

[ManTheVan]

Thanks for the link. Ordered some as we can’t seem to get hold of the wonderful “sticky stuff remover” we used to use.

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[NoName]

Thanks for the link. Ordered some as we can’t seem to get hold of the wonderful “sticky stuff remover” we used to use.

ManThe Van. "sticky stuff remover" try acetone available from pharmacies. Works on sticky labels and skin plasters.

 

[DuettoBrian]

If you have space, I would make an aluminium square-section frame and mount a new rigid panel over the 'dead' one.