How bird poop is affecting your solar panels

PHOENIX - Many Arizona residents have heard the sales pitch for solar panels: no maintenance required, enjoy the power of the sun and lower energy bills.

However, one Valley company says that's not entirely true - and it's all because of bird poop.

When pigeons nest across the state, they often find solar panels as a great home to raise their kids.

"They're going to lay their eggs, and it's not just one or two birds, it's a whole squawk of them…and you got to make sure you maintain your panels," said Denny Keserovic with Super Clean Bros.

This is the time of year when solar panels should be doing the most work, but if panels are dirty or covered in bird poop, that's a problem.

'Dirty solar panels usually within 6 months lose 50 percent of production," Keserovic said. "Once we clean them, it brings them back up."

The Super Clean Bros, which consists of Denny and his brother Sinad, get on the roofs and scrub away. On one day of jobs, the two of them might remove more than a hundred pounds of bird poop.

"We adapted from solar panel cleaning to bird proofing because we saw how much of an issue bird droppings are and how much heat the nesting causes on the panels," said Keserovic.

It's not just about getting the power up. The brothers say the poop can lead to warranty issues, which is a bigger problem than just birds.

"The solar panel starts having brown spots on top that burns out the cell, which could void your warranty," said Keserovic. "You've got to read that fine print. Maintenance is required."