Guides
Plain-English UK solar guides.
Suitability, costs, batteries, payback, and choosing an installer — written for UK homeowners and updated as the market changes.
Plug-in solar in the UK — what's actually changing in 2026
The UK government announced in March 2026 that plug-in solar panels under 800W will be legal to connect to mains sockets without an electrician. Here's what that actually means, who benefits, and what plug-in solar can't do.
Read the guide →
Common questions
Quick answers for UK homeowners.
Can I get solar panels?
A quick suitability check for UK homes — what rules you out, and what doesn’t.
Open →
Is my roof suitable?
Direction, pitch, and shade — what actually makes a roof work for solar.
Open →
How much sun does my roof get?
How sunlight falls on a roof month by month — summer glow, winter dip.
Open →
How much do they cost?
UK pricing in honest 2026 ranges, not a single made-up number.
Open →
Solar battery storage
When a battery actually pays back — and when it doesn’t.
Open →
Solar panel grants
Current UK schemes you can really use, no Facebook fluff.
Open →
Latest guides
- 8 min read cooling, heating, ukmarket
Air conditioning vs heat pump for UK homes — which do you need?
Air conditioning vs heat pump in the UK — they solve different jobs. An honest guide to air-to-air cooling, air-to-water heating, the £7,500 grant, and solar pairing.
Read →
- 8 min read batteries, cooling, ukmarket
The best solar battery setup for running air conditioning
How to size and choose a solar battery for air conditioning in the UK. Honest sizing logic, buying criteria, and time-of-use tips for evening and overnight cooling.
Read →
- 7 min read cooling, summer, ukmarket
Do solar panels keep your house cooler in summer?
Do solar panels reduce roof heat and keep your house cooler? An honest look at the shading effect research has found, and how big it really is for UK homes.
Read →
- 7 min read cooling, summer, ukmarket
Do solar panels work in a heatwave? What UK heat does to output
Do solar panels work in hot weather? Yes — but not because of the heat. An honest UK guide to what a heatwave really does to your solar output, and why summer still wins.
Read →
- 8 min read batteries, tariffs, cooling, ukmarket
Solar panels and air conditioning — can you run AC off solar in the UK?
UK summers are heating up. Can solar panels run home air conditioning? An honest guide to daytime cooling, night-time batteries, and when the maths actually works.
Read →
- 7 min read cooling, summer, seasonal, ukmarket
Solar panels in summer — what to expect from your UK system
Honest guide to UK solar in summer — peak output, long days, midday surplus, hot-weather efficiency, and how to use the generation you can't consume.
Read →
- 7 min read seg, tariffs, battery, ukmarket
Will SEG export rates fall? What more UK solar means for what you get paid
As UK solar capacity climbs, homeowners are asking whether today's 10–15p export rates can last. An honest look at the forces pulling rates down, the ones pushing back, and how to design a system that survives either way.
Read →
- 4 min read suitability, roof, beginners
How to check if your roof is suitable for solar — yourself, in two minutes
A free, no-survey way to check your roof for solar from your postcode — direction, sunlight, and a suitability read you can do before you ever speak to an installer.
Read →
- 5 min read ukmarket, suitability, data
Where Britain's solar panels actually are — and why Scotland leads
Ordnance Survey mapped solar panels across 40 million British buildings for the first time. Scotland leads adoption — not the sunny south. Here's what that means for your roof.
Read →
- 5 min read accreditation, installers, consumer-rights
MCS certified solar installers — what it means and how to check
MCS certification is required to claim the Smart Export Guarantee. Learn what it means, how to check any installer's certificate, and find MCS-verified installers near you.
Read →
- 5 min read plug-in, ukmarket, renters, prices
Lidl to sell £400 plug-in solar panels — what you need to know
Lidl, Amazon and EcoFlow are preparing to sell plug-in solar panels on the UK high street for around £400, after a government regulatory change. Here's how the kit works, what the government says you'll save, and who it's actually for.
Read →
- 5 min read tariffs, prices, ukmarket
Rising UK energy costs and solar — does the case actually change?
With renewed pressure on global energy markets in 2026, UK homeowners are asking whether to bring solar plans forward. An honest look at what changes, what doesn't, and why volatility is the better reason to act.
Read →
- 4 min read ev, batteries, tariffs, ukmarket
Solar and EV charging in the UK — a 2026 guide
Honest UK guide to pairing solar with EV charging in 2026. When daytime solar charging makes sense, smart EV chargers (Zappi, Ohme), and how this changes battery sizing.
Read →
- 4 min read tariffs, batteries, ukmarket
Solar with Octopus Go and time-of-use tariffs in 2026
How time-of-use tariffs (Octopus Go, Cosy, Agile) interact with solar and a battery, and when stacking them is genuinely worth the complexity.
Read →
- 3 min read seg, tariffs, ukmarket
Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) — how UK solar exports actually pay
Plain-English UK SEG explainer. What it is, which suppliers pay what per kWh, how the payment works, and whether chasing the highest rate is worth the switching effort.
Read →
- 4 min read process, installers, beginners
How long does a UK solar installation actually take?
Honest timeline for UK solar — from first quote to handover. Survey, DNO approval, scaffolding, install day, certification, and what happens after.
Read →
- 3 min read guide, beginners, ukmarket
A homeowner's guide to going solar in the UK (2026)
Plain-English guide to UK solar in 2026 — suitability, costs, batteries, grants, payback, and how to choose an installer. With links to the tools to run your own numbers.
Read →
- 4 min read inverters, technical, installers
Solar inverter types — string, optimisers, microinverters explained
Plain-English UK guide to solar inverter choices in 2026. When a single string inverter is fine, when optimisers or microinverters are worth the extra cost, and what changes for monitoring.
Read →
- 4 min read seasonal, ukmarket, beginners
Solar in winter — what UK homeowners should actually expect
Honest guide to UK solar performance from November to February. Output drops, snow, frost, monitoring, and why the financial case still works.
Read →
- 4 min read risk, installers, consumer-rights
What if my solar installer goes bust?
Honest UK guide to what protection you actually have if your solar installer ceases trading. MCS, insurance-backed warranties, manufacturer routes, and what to check before signing.
Read →
- 4 min read installers, beginners, guide
Eight questions to ask before you sign a solar quote
Practical pre-signing checklist for UK solar buyers. MCS, what's actually in the price, warranties, scaffolding, monitoring, and what often gets dropped.
Read →
- 4 min read accreditation, installers, consumer-rights
MCS, RECC, HIES — UK solar accreditations decoded
Plain-English guide to the three main UK solar accreditations. What each one actually is, what it protects you from, and what's optional but worth having.
Read →
Tools
Run the numbers for your home.
See an example report
A real, worked Solarable Report — score, savings and installers.
Open →
Check your roof yourself, free
A two-minute walkthrough — direction, sun, and suitability from your postcode.
Open →
How much sun does my roof get?
How sunlight falls on a UK roof, month by month.
Open →
Solar savings calculator
Annual benefit and payback in honest UK ranges.
Open →
Browse listed installers
Solar installers covering UK postcodes.
Open →