How are solar panel savings calculated?

Your solar panel savings come in two parts
  1. Self-consumption of solar generated energy, reducing the amount of electricity you have to buy from the grid.

  2. Smart Export Guarantee – units of electricity that you do not consume or store in a battery are exported to the national grid. For each unit your utility will pay you a Smart Export payment – these vary between suppliers, typically range between 3.5p – 5.5p/kWh.

The Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) the industry regulator – requires each solar panel installer to perform the same calculation to assess potential solar generation and savings.

(Annual Solar Generation = Solar Capacity x Irradiance (provided by MCS) x Shade factor)

Based on your expected generation, your electricity usage and usage archetype, MCS has produced a set of tables to calculate your expected level of self-consumption with and without a battery.

Downloads

Using these two figures provided by the regulator MCS, we can estimate your savings. The solar energy not consumed will be exported and earn the Smart Export Guarantee.

You can increase your savings further by moving your electricity consumption to try to consume as much of the energy generated from your solar array as possible. For example, by moving usage into daylight hours, using the washing machine in the day rather than at night or when the battery is charged.

How to increase your savings from solar and battery storage by up to 50% by changing just one setting on your hybrid inverter.

*Requires a smart meter, a time of use tariff, a time-charging capable hybrid inverter and a battery.

Time of use tariffs will become more and more popular as the smart meter roll out continues. Octopus have a tariff called Octopus Go whereby you can charge your electric car or solar batteries at night (00.30 – 04.30) for 7.5p/kWh compared to day usage of 31p/kWh.

Therefore saving 23.5p per kWh.

A 10 kWh battery could save £2.35 per day (10 x 23.5p) or £857.75 per year on top of the savings from your solar and battery storage installation.

Please note: This is more applicable to homes with higher electricity usage (perfect for heat pumps),not every home will be able to use the extra 10 kWh per day, especially during the summer when your solar array is providing a lot more energy.

In many cases, your solar and battery storage installation will cover your electricity usage during the summer months. In which case you may make time of use savings for 275 days rather than 365 for example.

faq’s about solar panel systems

One for the zoom family quiz!

In 1921, Albert Einstein won his first and only Nobel prize for his work on describing the photoelectric effect.

In a nutshell, light (a beam of particles) knocks off electrons from the solar cell; the solar cells direct these electrons along a current – creating electricity. In theory, solar panels could last forever as there are no moving parts.

 

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Solar power panel efficiency has increased significantly over the last ten years so you might be surprised at how much electricity even a small roof could generate.

The smallest system we would recommend would be 9 x 380W panels, covering an area of 17 square meters. (4m x 4.25m).

 

How many solar panels do I need?

No. It’s a common myth. Whilst south facing is the most optimum facing position, as a rule of thumb – an identical East or West facing roof would generate 85% as much energy as the south-facing roof.

You may prefer to have an east and west facing roof than the south and north-facing roof as you could fit twice as many electric residential solar panels on the east/west roof than just south facing.

Even a North facing roof will generate approx 55% as much energy as a south-facing roof. For example, a 20 year old 10% efficient south-facing solar panel would generate approximately the same amount of energy as a modern north-facing solar panel.

 

How do solar panels generate electricity

The installation of solar panels on residential buildings are considered permitted development so you do not require planning permission if they comply with the following conditions.

There are necessary limits and conditions which must be complied with to benefit from permitted development rights.

  • Solar panels should not be installed above the highest part of the roof and should not project more than 200mm from the roof slope or wall surface.
  • Installers should not install solar panels on a building that is within the grounds of a listed building or on a site designated as a scheduled monument.
  • If your property is in a conservation area, or a World Heritage Site, you must not install solar panels on a wall that faces a highway.

Feel free to reach out to us to buy solar panels in the UK & switch to a sustainable lifestyle. Give us a call at 01273 286 627 and request for a free design and quote.

 

Planning Portal

The district network operator (DNO) is the company responsible for distributing electricity from the national grid to your home. Installers must inform the DNO of your installation within 28 days after the date of installation. Leoht will handle this for you.

You do not require permission for systems under 16 amps per phase (3.68kW single-phase or 11.04kW three-phase supply). All of the residential solar panel systems that we install fall into this category. System sizes are based on the AC inverter rating rather than the peak DC output of the solar system.

“By following bad advice regarding output limits you could be costing yourself £000’s.”

 

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Not on their own. But it is possible when combined with a time of use tariff and energy storage – depending on the time of use tariff and smart export guarantee rates.

For example, Octopus Go tariff pays 5.5p/kWh for every unit exported and charges 5p/kWh for off-peak use from 00:30 – 04:30. You could install solar panels that generate the equivalent of 100%+ of your electricity consumption and earn 5.5p/kWh for every unit exported to pay for topping up the batteries in the winter at 5p/kWh.

Your bills could even go negative if you can generate more than you use!

Time of use tariffs are why we have smart meters so expect them to become more common in future.

Yes. Solar panels are worth the cost. We believe that solar pv panels systems are an excellent investment for both you and the environment.

Our solar power panels systems cost between £5000 to £9000+ VAT, depending on the size and location of your home. This may seem expensive, but by installing a solar system we aim to reduce your electricity bill by up to 100%. Where else could you earn 9-13% per year tax-free on a low-risk investment, whilst protecting against rising energy prices and helping the environment at the same time.

Our solar panels are durable and come with a 25-30 year warranty. If well maintained, our solar panels can last for more than 30 years. Our solar panels are modern and blend well with any roof. A premium solar panel installation acting as your home’s own energy supply is likely to increase the value of your property.

Solar panels are largely maintenance-free. Over time, however, they may be affected by environmental factors – dead leaves, for example, may block sections of the panel. We recommend that solar panels are checked every few years to ensure maximum efficiency and cleaned once or twice a year.

Solar panels need sunlight to generate energy, so they do not work at night. However, you can install a battery to store excess electricity generation during the day to then be used later at night.

Negative electricity bills

Generating more energy than you use could turn your electricity bills negative.

The marginal cost of adding panels to a 4 kW solar system is negligible, you may as well use the space available and go larger.

Find out how much you could save with solar

Our cost and savings calculator can help you find the right solar specification for you and how much you could save!

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Which system are you interested in?

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