Solar Panel Installations

• You can use Solar Panels to generate green electricity from sunlight.
• Over 900,000 homes across the country already benefit from clean, affordable solar power.
• A Solar Photovoltaic (Solar PV) module (or panel) absorbs and converts sunlight into electricity.
• They don’t need direct sunlight to work – they can still generate some electricity on a cloudy day.
• Solar PV modules are supplied as a sealed unit with a specific voltage and wattage rating.

In order to provide electricity for a building Solar PV modules have to be combined in a system with other components (including an inverter, wiring and roof mounting kit). PV cells come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Most PV systems are made up of panels that fit on top of an existing roof, but you can also fit solar tiles.

You do not need planning permission to install solar, unless you live in a listed building.

However, in Conservation Areas or World Heritage sites, the equipment must be installed on the roof, not on a wall that would be visible from a highway.

Increasingly, consumers are choosing to complement their Solar installation with battery storage as it can improve the performance by capturing surplus electricity and saving it, so it can be used later.