Hail-Resilient Modules
Protect your projects with hail-resilient modules.
To learn more, simply fill out the form below and an Erthos salesperson will be in touch to answer your questions and help you get started.
The status quo needs to go.
To obtain IEC 61215 Hail Certification, a module must simply pass a test in which it is struck with 11 one-inch ice balls traveling 25 miles per hour. If it survives the test with no visual damage and less than 5% power loss, it passes and is considered “hail-certified.” Frankly, this isn’t good enough. According to NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center, there were more than 10,000 US hail events in 2023 alone that produced hail stones in excess of 1 inch, as shown in the map below.
Calculate your risk.
Erthos works with independent testing laboratory VDE Americas to validate the hail resiliency of our modules, and to perform in-depth hail risk analysis for our customers. If you would like a detailed report of your project’s true level of hail risk, simply fill out the form at the top of this page to get started. Or you can contact VDE directly by filling out the form at the bottom of this page: https://www.vde.com/en/vde-americas/hail-risk/hail-risk-advisory-products.
Finally, a hail solution that works.
Erthos is proud to introduce the utility-scale solar industry’s first commercially available hail-resilient module for utility-scale solar projects. Produced in partnership with SEG Solar, a U.S.-based solar module manufacturer, our hail-resilient module has 4-millimeter front glass and 2-millimeter back glass, making it resilient to hail stones as large as a baseball. Talk about a home run.
Standard “hail-certified” modules are rated for hail up to 1 inch in diameter.
Hail-resilient modules from Erthos are rated for hail up to 3 inches in diameter.
You can have your cake and eat it, too.
The standard solution for mitigating hail damage on a utility-scale solar plant is to put the modules in maximum stow position whenever there is a threat of hail. However, this position also leaves modules vulnerable to high-speed winds, which commonly accompany hailstorms. Stowing decreases the potential for hail damage but increases the potential for wind damage; on the other hand, not stowing decreases the potential for wind damage while leaving the plant more vulnerable to hail.
Erthos sidesteps this dilemma by utilizing a solar module that can withstand direct impacts from hailstones as large as three inches in diameter. Because our hail-resilient modules are installed flat on the ground, they also boast an industry-best wind rating of 194 miles per hour, making Earth Mount Solar PV the only system on the market today that can withstand severe hailstorms and high-speed winds at the same time. Truly a win-win situation situation.
Peace of mind for next to nothing.
According to insurance industry reports, hail accounts for less than 2% of solar project insurance claims by volume, but more than 50% of total dollar losses. An Erthos hail-resilient module with 4.0 mm front glass costs about 2 cents more per watt than a standard 2.0 mm front glass module – and that’s it. There are no other associated costs. No human operator, no monitoring equipment, no required power, no wireless networks, no motors, no batteries – just a more robust module laying flat on the ground, withstanding hail up to three inches in diameter and wind speeds up to 194 miles per hour.
Insurance-backed system warranties.
Rather than relying on complex mechanical systems, software, weather data, or manual interventions, Erthos simply increases the typical PV module front glass thickness from 2.0 mm to 4.0 mm. This straightforward modification has been shown to prevent module damage from hail stones up to 3 inches in diameter.
