PZU sets fire to the panels. The first fire tests of photovoltaics in Poland were carried out
Every year, the Fire Service records several hundred interventions related to fires in PV installations, including those in industrial or warehouse facilities, where the spread of fire may create unique threats and may also result in huge losses. Most such incidents are the result of assembly errors or faulty electrical connections, and not the modules themselves. PZU LAB and Balex Metal conducted the first full-scale fire tests in Poland of mock-ups of warehouse halls equipped with PV installations to check how different types of roof thermal insulation will affect the development of fire.
The growing number of photovoltaic installations in Poland forces increasing emphasis on fire protection of such systems. According to the CNBOP-PIB report “Fire safety of photovoltaic installations”, issues related to fire protection today do not keep pace with the development of energy transformation. According to experts it should be assumed that PV installations are fire safe if they have the required security measureswere designed and constructed by qualified, authorized and competent personnel on the basis of design documentation agreed on fire protection conditions and are subject to periodic service and maintenance inspections.
Sometimes, in order to effectively protect something against fire, you have to burn something else first… 🔥 Our engineers at #PZU LAB together with Balex Metal conducted the first fire tests in Poland of warehouse halls with a functioning photovoltaic installation on a real scale.
On… pic.twitter.com/ssNNcRxw0w
— PZU Group (@GrupaPZU) October 21, 2025
Experts emphasize that in addition to introducing new technologies, it is necessary to develop the knowledge and competences of installers. According to CNBOP-PIB analyses, the source of risk is not only design errors, but also improper selection of components and lack of maintenance. In recent years, the fire brigade has recorded several hundred interventions annually in which PV installations are present at the site of a fire, and about half of them are related to incorrect installation or damage to the electrical installation.
In Poland, there is a lack of comprehensive research showing how PV installations behave in real fire conditions. PZU LAB – a company from the PZU Group, employing engineers specializing in optimization and risk management in industry, and Balex Metal, a leading manufacturer of sandwich panels, PIR thermal insulation and other solutions for residential, industrial and agricultural construction, belonging to the Kingspan group, undertook to conduct such a test and analyze its results.
Thanks to the cooperation of both entities, the first full-scale fire tests in Poland of warehouse halls with a working photovoltaic installation were carried out. A model of an object with an area of over 250 square meters was created at the research site. with a roof made in two technologies – with thermal insulation made of PIR boards and mineral wool – and with 36 PV modules with full wiring (on each roof covering version), installed in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions and producing electricity. Thanks to this, conditions similar to a real fire were created.
– This is one of the most comprehensive studies of this type in Europe. We wanted not only to analyze the behavior of various construction solutions in the event of fire, but also to provide the insurance and construction industries with knowledge that will allow them to better manage risk. The weather was good, so we were able to carry out both tests as planned and collect material of high cognitive value – says Dariusz Gołębiewski, president of PZU LAB.
The first day of the tests was devoted to the analysis of fire initiation and temperature distribution in subsequent layers of the roof made of PIR boards.
– We could observe how both the flame and temperature spread, and how the thermal energy penetrated the entire roof cross-section. There are clear discolorations on the trapezoidal sheet metal, which show how strong the impact of the fire was. We also noticed that the wind had the greatest influence on the direction of flame spread – we observed the classic chimney effect, which spread the fire more than the photovoltaic modules themselves – explained Szymon Pergał, risk engineer from PZU LAB, to Newseria.
The scenario on the second day of testing was analogous and was conducted in a hall with a roof filled with mineral wool.
– Changeable weather conditions gave us a fantastic opportunity to verify the impact of wind on fire propagation. Looking at the degree of fire spread, we see that the photovoltaic structure itself is extremely important. Correctly selected, it limits the development of fire. If we are talking about thermal insulation, which we tested here in the form of PIR foam and mineral wool, the results of both tests show that the impact of fire on roof covering layers in large-scale buildings is not limited to the effects visible on the surface of the fire site – says Michał Dąbrowski, product development manager at Balex Metal.
Over the next weeks, analyzes of the data collected during both experiments will be carried out, and at the end, conclusions regarding fire safety will be prepared. The tests will allow you to assess the impact of the type of insulation, installation method and cable arrangement on fire dynamics.
Similar research was conducted abroad. The IEA-PVPS report shows that one of the European SP FIRE 105 experiments tested a 4 x 6 m wall covered with PV modules to assess the rate of flame spread. In turn, the Swedish RISE institute showed that when the distance between the PV module and the roof is less than 11 cm, the fire spreads automatically, and increasing the inclination of the panels can accelerate the rate of fire development by approximately 25%.
As Michał Dąbrowski emphasizes, exactly such tests help create common safety standards.
– They allow us to reliably evaluate the solutions we offer on the market and expand our knowledge and that of our clients. Such full-scale tests are the most valuable because they show the actual behavior of materials, not just the results from small laboratory samples – says the product development manager at Balex Metal.
Conclusions from international research show that even minor design changes regarding the way cables are routed, the type of connectors or the distance of the PV module from the roof can significantly affect the spread of fire. Polish tests are intended to verify these observations in practice. The information collected will be used to develop recommendations for investors, designers and insurers and to build new fire safety standards for facilities with photovoltaic installations. PZU LAB also plans to use the test results in certification processes (the company is accredited by the Polish Center for Accreditation as a type A inspection body in the field of fire alarm systems and sprinkler and fog installations).
