Anything, netting, polycarbonate panels, armor film, will reduce light on the panels, and thus, reduce output.

POA - whatever that is, should allow you to protect your property, or allow them to take on the task of replacing broken panels.

Had you recently moved into the area, were you not aware of golf balls impacting your roof and yard ? are you expected to never use your yard because of hazards of incoming golf balls ?

Maybe JPM can answer that question since he lives on a golf course and is familiar with HOA's. Some HOA;s will not allow anything to be installed without their permission but golf courses are supposed to have insurance to protect against property damage so I am unsure what the OP's next action is.

How much would poly-carbonate block? Would it take the hits from golf balls or would it crack too? Property Owners Assn (HOA) has declined existing netting over the roof, netting on poles like a golf range, and chicken wire with conduit supports over the panels. They said a quick search showed them other ways to protect the panels but I can't find anything else.

This question has come up both on this forum and at HOA meetings I've been a part of.

The short answer is: Tough luck. While not quite SOL, you're mostly on your own. The usual logic: Know what you're buying into. There are some places and maybe judges who will agree that a golfer playing in an irresponsible fashion might be found to have some responsibility, but that's a pretty murky area, particularly if the judge or arbitration referee happens to be a golfer.

Most HOA CC & R's that I'm aware of that are located on golf courses (I'm on my third) have language that provides and requires as a condition of HOA membership that all owners assume all risk from errant golf balls, and agree not to make any claims against the association for ball strikes/damage/injury. That includes not violating other CC & R regs. like putting up stuff that may be offensive to the board or other governing body such as nets etc. That applies double or so if the HOA and the course are separate entities as is often the case.

When I lived at PGA West, the HOA and the owner of the courses were, and still are to my knowledge, separate. Still the CC& R's at PGA West were tighter than a bull's butt in fly season with respect to errant golf balls (as well as for errant carts and drunken golfers pissing on your patio or peeking in widows for that matter). As you might guess, golf balls were all over the place, but folks knew what they were buying into. But, there were no PV arrays when I lived there. Maybe they've lightened up some with respect to PV arrays.

If the HOA does not own the course, another option might be to sue the course or the offending golfer if (s)he can be found.

One owner in my current HOA had some luck taking an offending golfer through small claims court when the golfer put a ball through a window. That succeeded mostly because the golfer never showed up in court and the owner got a judgement against him. Don't know if the owner ever collected.

One other possibility: If there were changes in the course design after the owner took possession of the property, I've heard of a rumor of some case law that an owner used the change to get some relief.

As for polycarbonates vs. a net, I've measured transmissivity at ~ 84 - 86 % with normal (vertical) incidence angles, but the off vertical angle transmissivity rolls off faster than for regular glass. For panel glazing that usually has an ARC costing, that roll off for polycarbonate transmissivity may extract more of a penalty than ARC glass.

A SWAG for integrated daylong transmissivity for polycarbonate is probably something like 70 - 75 %, meaning maybe about a 25+ % reduction in PV output, including possible/likely efficiency reductions for increased solar cell temp.

A lot of polycarbonate material looks like crap anyway, not to mention the hassle of finding a fixation method that is safe and effective and will stay in one place in a wind event (and still be removeable for cleaning on a regular basis).

I'm also not sure an HOA would like the looks of polycarbonate and its fixation method(s) any better than netting that looked like a catchment for a human cannonball.

Then there's the considerations related to the possible voiding of a panel warranty claim if it could be shown that a panel failed due to being modified in some way such as affixing something to it.

Check with your homeowners' insurance carrier about golf ball damage claims and while you're at it, if/how much/any limitations on PV array damage that may/may not be covered. There may be some relief there.

Homeowners Ins deductible is $500 and each panel costs $500 including labor to replace so unless a hail storm damages multiple panels at once, Ins never pays. .... How will the poly-carbonate stand up to golf ball hits?

Depends on the hit. I know 1/4" plexiglass is pretty tough but (for anyone who's played Castle Creek north of Escondido), there was an owner a couple lots up from me of one of the townhouses on the 12 fairway about 75 yards from the middle tee who had protective plexiglass on the tee side of his patio. That plex got replaced every couple of months or so. The (hard ?) hits looked like starbursts. The HOA let it stand. He eventually moved and I believe it has not been replaced.

My guess is depending on the type and form of the poly, it will take a minor hit but not a hard one.

BUT, I'm mostly ignorant of the fracture mechanics and characteristics of polycarbonate materials, particularly as f(temperatures, solar exposure, embrittlement from flexure fatigue, other factors). Do not take my opinion as authoritative in such matters.

I'm sure a thin polycarbonate sheet mounted slightly above the glass would take the brunt of the golf ball hit and even if the polycarbonate cracked or crazed slightly, it would stay intact and protect the solar panel further. Trouble is the cost to professionally mount and maintain all of that poycarbonate sheeting. Anything going up there has to be very securely mounted to survive severe weather and wind. I can't image it would last more than 8-10 years before needing replaced.

I wonder if any of the thicker polyurethane rock protection films they apply to the front of cars would be a solution? That stuff is tough and UV rated for many years of exposure.


Many years ago, we had two solar hot water panels, three windows, one sliding patio doors and two car windshields (parked in the street on the other side of our 2-story house) destroyed by golf balls. Even my daughter suffered a nasty hit when she was out playing in the yard with her friends. My neighbor got hit in the face while swimming in his pool and lucky he didn't lose consciousness and drown. All of that in a 2-year period. The HOA would not budge on allowing any type of screens or protection. The city owned the golf course but told us that golfers were liable for all damages. Not a single golfer ever offered to help pay for the repairs or even help with the deductible. When my daughter got hit, they walked past her to the next hole like it was an ordinary day. If I was a golfer I might have realized the house was at a very vulnerable position compared to the other homes around the course. We moved because I knew things would never get better. Our departure was expedited even more when the HOA tried to fine us for hanging a beach towel on our patio railing.

Possibly you could put up some 1/2 inch spacing hardwire cloth, spaced far enough from
the panel to bounce the ball off without contacting the panel. I will guess taking a 20% hit
on production with sun blockage, but extra panels could fix that and no more broken.

Need to take the hardware cloth down in snow season. good luck, Bruce Roe

I tried the chicken wire suspended over the panels but the HOA shot it down. No Snow here in central Texas to worry about. I might try it again using the "hardwire cloth" option. Who knows, it might just confuse them a bit.

Which side of your house do you need to protect and how high do you think the barrier needs to be? Perhaps you could solve this with a solid row of tall columnar trees, if it won't impinge too much on your production.

Motorcycle windscreens are made of polycarbonate, it is very tough, I'm sure the correct thickness would take golfball impacts without issue. Polycarbonate will yellow and craze over time however.

I have run into "mist hets" used for bird surveys in the past, they are remarkably strong yet barely visible. How about just stretching them across the panels with a gap between the net and the panels. They are designed to stretch to reduce the stress imparted on the bird when it hits it so there would be trial and error for the required gap.

Not having a better idea, this isn't meant as a a knock, but while the net material might be less visible than chicken wire, what about the visibility of the means of supporting a net as well as the shadows such supports might create ?

Google "mist nets" and toggle images. Doesn't look like aesthetics is the highest priority.

Also, might net durability be a question ?

At this time there doesn't seem to be a "nice looking" solution to protect pv panels against hard objects like golf balls without reducing the percentage of the panels production.