Edward,
First of all welcome.
Yes you can change the panels and they are not that hard to do. I am not sure what the cost of the Ascent panels would be but as a guess I would say around $800.00 USD. This is just a guess so they may be less.
Typically a panel will be losing life if it is dirty (possible), or losing charge from the power supply (too soon/too new). First, look on the panels for small dots. These can be observed if you get real close and look through the "metal grid". This is really dust and other pollutants which are present in the air in your house. Actually, just about everyone's house has this.
If they are there then cleaning should be done. We always have a little bit but I am talking about having it on a good portion of the panel.
Now some questions for you to answer. Have you ever vacuumed the panels? If not please do so. There are many threads here regarding how it is done. Also, you can remove the panels and wash them with mild warm water in the shower, no soap, shampoo or creme rinse.
This is also here on how to do that. All of these options just take time, no money and do work well. Your panels should last at least 10 years or better with out issue. I would recommend vacuuming once a month or two. If you smoke a lot of have other pollutants, i.e. kitchen fumes, lots of animals maybe once a month. These are just guidelines.
To get an exact price on the panels email Jim Power at the factory, his email address is:
[email protected].
Best of all relax enjoy the journey, listen to lots of music and have fun.
Jeff
