How to Read Your Solar Monitoring Data
What to look for in your Enphase, SolarEdge, or SunPower monitoring data — and when it's time to call a cleaner.
Most solar monitoring apps tell you a lot more than 'you produced X kWh today'. Here's what to actually watch — and when the numbers say it's time for a cleaning.
Daily production patterns
A healthy production curve is a smooth bell shape peaking at solar noon. Notches, dips, or asymmetry usually mean shading (a tree grew, an antenna was added) or partial soiling. If the curve looks different than it did a year ago in the same month, something has changed.
Panel-level data (where available)
Enphase and SolarEdge give you per-panel production. A single panel reading 20% lower than its neighbors is the dead giveaway for either soiling on that panel or a hardware failure. Compare panels in the same row, with the same tilt and orientation — that's apples to apples.
When trending production loss means cleaning vs. failure
Across-the-board slow decline almost always means soiling — clean the panels and you'll see the recovery within days. Sudden drops on specific panels usually mean hardware. Use both signals together: clean first, then thermal-scan to confirm anything that didn't recover.