What actually decides it
Whether solar is worth it is not really a question about panels. It is a question about how much of the electricity you generate you use yourself, because the electricity you use is worth far more than the electricity you export. Two identical systems can return very differently depending only on what time of day the household uses power.
Self consumption is the number that matters. A smaller system whose output is mostly used at home usually beats a larger one whose output is mostly exported.
The things that move the answer
Your daytime usage pattern
A home that uses electricity through the day, someone working from home, a car charged during daylight, hot water on a timer, gets far more from solar than a home that is empty until the evening. If most of your use is after dark, the case for panels leans heavily on adding storage.
Roof orientation and shading
South facing is ideal, but east and west roofs still work and can suit a household that uses power in the morning and evening. Shading from trees, chimneys or a neighbouring building matters more than people expect, because it can pull down the output of a whole string rather than a single panel.
Roof condition and suitability
Panels are meant to last decades, so the roof under them has to last at least as long. A covering near the end of its life should be dealt with first. Because we are builders, that is something we can assess and put right, rather than a reason to walk away or a problem discovered once the scaffold is up.
What you are paid to export
Exported electricity is paid at a much lower rate than you pay to import, so a system designed to export most of its output earns slowly. This is why sizing to your actual use, rather than to the roof area, is the difference between a good system and a disappointing one.
When solar is worth it
- You use a meaningful amount of electricity during daylight hours
- Your roof faces somewhere between east and west and is not heavily shaded
- The roof has years of life left, or you are happy to have it put right first
- You are staying in the home long enough to see the payback
When it is not
- The house is empty all day and you are not adding a battery
- The roof is small, shaded or oriented away from the sun
- The covering needs replacing and that is not part of the plan
- You expect to move well before the system pays back
An honest survey, not a bigger sale
At the survey we look at your usage pattern and your roof and give you the figures rather than defaulting to the largest array. Sometimes the honest answer is a smaller system, sometimes it is solar with storage, and occasionally it is that solar is not the right spend for your home yet. The cost side is covered in how much solar panels cost, and the storage question in is battery storage worth it. Our solar service begins with a free no obligation survey.