All your questions answered about installing our solar products at your home or business.
Roughly a 4kW solar panel system can cost between £5,000-£7,000.
Although not required you should consider installing a battery so you can store energy when you’re not able to use it, for example, if you’re out during the day you could store energy for use at night.
Currently, there are no grants available for solar panel installations.
Yes, solar panel installations are VAT free for all domestic installs until 2027. You can read more about this in our VAT-free blog.
No, commercial businesses cannot benefit from zero VAT on solar panel installations, but you can take advantage of a super-deduction until March 2023. You can find out more about the super deduction here.
Solar panels can either be mounted to the roof or they can be ground mounted.
Although not a requirement yet, new builds are required to produce a minimum of 10% self-generated energy, although this figure can vary from council to council.
DNO stands for Distribution Network Operator, this is the licensed company responsible for distributing electricity from the national grid to your business or home.
In order to find this out, you can simply visit the Electricity Network Association website.
The typical life expectancy of solar panels is 25-30 years.
Yes, if you have a solar-compatible EV charger then you can use the sun rays to charge up your car.
Solar panels could greatly improve your home’s EPC rating and add value to your home.
Yes, not only can solar panels power your home but they can also heat your water. You will need a water tank and immersion diverter for this.
Solar PV systems require very little maintenance throughout their lifetime, and are generally self-cleaning when installed on a pitched roof.
In many cases installing solar panels on the roof of a single dwelling house is considered permitted development under planning law with no need to apply for planning permission. As long as the following conditions are met:
- Solar panels cannot be installed above the highest part of the roof this excludes the chimney, they should also not project more than 200mm from the roof slope or any wall surface.
- Solar panels cannot be installed on a building that is a listed building or on a site that is designated as a scheduled monument.
- Solar panels must not be fitted to a property within a conservation area, or world heritage site if they will front a highway.
- If you are installing solar panels on a lease property you may need to obtain permission from the landlord, freeholder or a management company.
In many cases commercial solar panels installed on a business or commercial premises is considered permitted development under planning law with no need to apply for planning permission. As long as the following conditions are met:
- Solar panels installed on a wall or pitched roof cannot project more than 200mm from the wall surface or roof slope.
- Solar panels installed on a flat roof cannot be more than one meter above the highest part of the roof excluding the chimney.
- Solar equipment installed on the roof cannot be within one meter of the external edge of the roof.
- Solar equipment installed on a wall cannot be within one meter of a junction of that wall with another wall or the roof of the building.
- Solar panels cannot be installed on a listed building or a building within the grounds of a listed building or a site designated as a scheduled monument.
- If a building is an Article 2(3) designated land solar equipment cannot be installed on a wall or roof which fronts the highway.
- Solar panels installed on the roof cannot generate more than 1 megawatt of solar power.
Installing ground mounted solar panels that will have a total surface area of more than 9 square meters will require planning permission. Contact us for more information and assistance with your project.
Yes, you can use the power generated by your solar panels to charge your electric car.
Shading can have a serious impact on a solar panels system performance, this effects the amount of energy your system generates and can significantly reduce the financial return of your system. However, our expert team assess your property before an installation to ascertain if shading could be an issue. If shading is identified we install optimizers on each panel, these reduce the effects of shading and allow your system to work effectively.
Yes, we are able to fit solar panels onto flat roofs. We will consult with structural engineers prior to fitting to ensure the solar panels will not compromise your roof.
Yes, we can supply and install ground-mounted solar panels at your home if you do not want them mounted to your roof.
No, solar panels do not work at night. They require daylight in order to convert solar energy into electricity.
Yes, solar panels will continue to work throughout winter. This is because solar panels do not require direct sunlight to work they only require daylight.
No, solar panels don’t require direct sunlight to work. Solar panels only need daylight to work, meaning they generate energy even on a cloudy day.
As you may of heard yes solar panels do work very well on south facing roofs, and if its available we would also try to install on south facing roofs. However solar panels work just as well on south-east south-west and east-west facing roofs, although when compared to south facing you loose around 10-20% of performance.