With energy prices on the rise, many of us are looking for ways to reduce our electricity bills. Solar panels are a viable way of cutting your electricity bills (although they can be expensive at first) but are they worth it? We’ll weigh out the pros and cons from how much they cost, and how much you can save. Ultimately though, that decision will be up to you.
How Much Do Solar Panels Cost to Install?
How much solar panels cost depends on how many of them you have. The cost of installation can vary between companies, and the better quality panels, the more they’ll cost.
Here’s a rough guide on how much solar panels would cost to have on your home.
- A 1 bedroom house would need around 3 solar panels, costing on average £1,440.
- A 2-3 bedroom house would need around 9 solar panels, costing on average £4,320.
- A 4 bedroom house would need around 12 solar panels, costing on average £5,760.
The government has recently cut the VAT on solar panels to 0%, saving you money on the upfront cost. Once your solar panels have been installed, they’ll last on average 25 to 30 years with little or no maintenance costs. At this point they don’t stop working altogether. They’re just a lot less effective at generating electricity.
There’s no cheap way of getting solar panels. You could either use savings to pay for them or take out a long or short term loan from a direct lender. If you want to spread some of the cost with repayments over 6 months, Lending Stream can help But any cash loan you take out will have interest to pay back on top.
Before installing your solar panels, get written quotes from at least three companies. That way you can check that there are no hidden extras, like scaffolding for example.
How Much Money Can Solar Panels Save?
Solar panels will save you money each year. Your electricity bill could be almost cut in half, and savings could amount to anywhere from £400 to £700 per year.
You can also earn money from your solar panels by using the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG). This is a scheme that lets you sell your unused electricity back to a supplier. The rate you’ll get paid per kilowatt hour differs from one energy company to another. It’s worth shopping around to find out how much you’ll get for yours. But overall, you can expect to make over £100 per year.
You don’t have to sell your spare electricity if you don’t want to. You could store it for your own use. But to do this you’d need to have a solar battery. Having one of these installed would add more to your upfront costs.
Are Solar Panels Worth It?
There are many things to consider before you install solar panels. We’ve listed some points for you to think about here.
- Solar panels will eventually pay for themselves. But it can take anywhere from 10 to 30 years to break even on the initial installation cost.
- The further north you live, the less daylight hours you have compared to people living in the south. This means you’ll generate slightly less of your own electricity, and you’d have less to sell.
- You’ll get more out of your solar panels by using them during the day when they’re generating the most power.
- If you’re likely to move home in the next 5 years, it’s probably not worth doing. You’re unlikely to make back the cost of having them installed in that time. Solar panels may slightly increase the value of your house, but some people find them ugly. And if you’ve taken out a loan to pay for them, you’ll still have to pay that off when you move.
- You should ideally have a south facing, diagonal roof to put them on. Solar panels on north facing roofs are less effective. If you’ve got a flat roof, it may cost more to install your solar panels.
- You need quite a lot of roof space to put your solar panels on. For example, on a 2 to 3 bedroom house, the solar panels would need 18 square meters of roof space.
In Summary
Solar panels are a great way of saving you money on your energy bills. As a green energy supply, they’re good for the planet too, but they do come with big upfront costs to install. To break even on your investment quicker, you’ll need to use most of your energy during daylight hours.
How much money you save will depend on a number of factors. You’ll need to weigh up all the information before deciding if solar panels are worthwhile for you.
Disclaimer: We are not providing financial advice, these are just tips for informational purposes.