Did you see our leaflet locally or speak to a solar consultant?

Solar PV systems are becoming increasingly popular across the UK, becoming cheaper and easier to produce, meaning there has probably never been a better time to have solar panels installed. With energy prices having escalated in recent years, many households are looking for ways of being more energy efficient through renewable energy sources.

Solar panels offer a straightforward and convenient way of harnessing solar power and using this to generate your own electricity. While there are other solar options such as solar thermal panels, which are used to generate hot water, these are not as commonplace and don’t usually generate sufficient hot water to fully meet a household’s hot water demand.

Installing solar panels is clearly a big investment for many people and not a decision to be taken lightly. Clearly, there are annual bill savings to be made by generating electricity through your own solar panel system, and there is also a reduced carbon footprint to be taken into account.

When having solar panels fitted, your main concern is ultimately likely to be whether the solar power your system is producing is going to be sufficient for your needs and will bring you energy bill savings, and possibly some excess electricity, that you can sell back to the grid under the Smart Export Guarantee.

In the best case, payback with SEG payments can happen within around 10-12 years, but in some cases, it could take much longer. With solar panels lasting around 20-30 years, and sometimes longer, you are going to enjoy many years of free electricity and clean renewable energy, and an improved Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), but most importantly reduced energy bills that make solar panels work out as a good investment in most cases.

There’s a big difference between sunlight and daylight. Solar panels need daylight to generate power – not the sun’s rays. In recent years, solar panel manufacturers have become more adept at producing solar panels that are better able to generate electricity even when the conditions are less than perfect.

This means you can still generate power with solar panels even on cloudy days. In fact, less direct sunlight can sometimes be beneficial – too much heat can reduce the power solar panels capture and the electricity generated by up to 25%.

You don’t have to add a smart solar battery when you install solar panels. However, without battery storage, you will only be able to use the electricity your new PV panels generate for your home at the time it is generated, rather than generating energy for later use.

When there is no solar energy to tap into, your energy supply will revert back to the Grid for its electricity supply. A smart solar battery stores your energy ready so you can use it or store it for when you need it. It is also possible to sell surplus electricity produced by your solar PV system back to the grid in return for payment under the Smart Export Guarantee (which for new applicants replaced the previous Feed in tariff (FIT) scheme).

Absolutely! One of the main appeals of solar systems in general is that they can be tweaked to suit you. Of course, we recommend installing solar panels and batteries together right away to maximise your system from the get-go, but you don’t have to.

If you decide at first that a solar battery isn’t necessary for your system, that’s fine. You can always change your mind after the fact, and one of our expert installers will be more than happy to come back and fit a battery, so your solar panels work better for you.

Solar panels have an average lifespan of around 20-30 years, and some solar panel manufacturers even provide 25-year warranties as standard. Most will also allow you to extend their warranties for a small fee, so confident are manufacturers in their technology.

Some modern panels could last for closer to 40 years in the right conditions and with the proper care and attention.