Are Solar Panels the Right Choice for Your Home?
Solar panels take advantage of one of nature’s most powerful yet free resources: the energy produced by the sun. Solar panels, also known as photovoltaic systems (PV systems), use semiconductor technology to convert energy from sunlight into electricity that can power your household.
Electricity all year round – Solar panels generate clean, emission-free electricity to power your home all year round, while their long life span of more than 25 years makes them a long-term good investment.
Increase the market value of your property & earn money from solar grants – Selling surplus electricity generated by your solar panels is another advantage that solar panels offer. You will not simply earn money from SEG, but also increase the market value of your house.
Reduce your carbon footprint – A solar-powered home reduces the carbon footprint and helps to eliminate domestic harmful emissions.
Solar panel installation Find out if your home is suitable for solar PV panels and what to expect from a solar panel installation
Considering buying Wholesale purchase sungold Solar panel, what happens when solar panels are installed and learn whether your home is suitable for solar. Getting solar panels installed isn’t as disruptive as you might think. In fact 94% of the solar panel owners in our survey said they didn’t find getting their solar panels disruptive.
How long does it take to install solar panels?
If the solar panels are being installed on your roof, you’re probably going to need scaffolding. Once the scaffolding is up, the panels could be installed in less than a day.
Roofers will attach the fixing brackets on to the rafters of your roof – this is why a proper surveyor should go into your loft to check the integrity of the roof and the rafters. The solar panels will then be clamped on to the fixing brackets.
Although a south-facing roof will give the best power output, a south-west or south-east-facing roof should also be fine. But you would get less power out of the system, and be able to save less on your electricity bill.
How much energy you could produce with solar panels – and therefore how much money you could make – will depend on: the tilt angle of your roof and its orientation where you live: the South West gets more sun than the North, for instance, and this could affect the amount of electricity your system will generate, although not too significantly.
Six in 10 solar panel owners in rural areas generated more than 2,500kWh per year.* In urban areas, fewer solar panel owners (approaching half of those surveyed in urban areas) generated this amount.
But the size of the system is a big factor affecting electricity generation. Those in rural areas were also most likely to have larger solar panel systems.
Use our solar panel buying advice and see the best solar panels brands to help make your decision.
What is the best roof direction for solar panels?
The table below shows the percentage of the maximum output you will get from a solar PV system, depending on your roof orientation (west, south, east) and tilt angle
However, within 25 years, you’ll need to replace the inverter – 14% had a problem with their inverter, when we asked solar panel owners.* Once you’ve had solar panels installed, your installer should give you written details of any maintenance checks you need to carry out occasionally to check your system is working properly. Use our search tool to find a solar panel installer in your area.
How can I ensure my solar panel installation goes well?
Make sure you don’t end up with panels overhanging the roof. Where panels are fitted just above the existing roof, it’s good practice to leave at least 30-40cm between the last panel and the roof edge to allow for access and to minimise the risk of strong wind blowing the panels off. So before your installer draws up the plans, ask how much space they’re leaving between the panel and the roof’s edge.
