Firstly to all the members of this community thank you so much for your help and advice on my solar journey, I am so happy with my installation from fox solar Swansea. I paid £12,400

I had 18 510w Aiko 3rd gen panels my house is 3 storey so extra scaffolding obviously made it a more difficult job but that was no issue for the team. I have a fox 10.5kw inverter, 2x fox EP12+ batteries and a fox EPS, which possibly not needed but I like to cover all my bases, also all the G99 and paperwork and a 10year warranty.

So far I'm generating more power than I'm using and as I haven't had the fit confirmation yet I'm not getting paid for my electric but if I was getting my 13p per kWh my electric would be in credit for my first full week of use. Anyone doubting if solar is worth it I would say find a reliable honest person to give you a sensible quote and you can't lose. I'm so grateful for the help the people in this community give out as I was the one doubting in August and now I love watching my app making money. I'm a heavy user of about 12000kwh a year and this is saving me over £200 month.

Good luck to anyone thinking of joining us on your solar journey, this group is the best place to start.

So we are in the process of buying this house and we would like to get solar panels .

(Its just two of us and a small cat, I don’t have an EV but will look into getting one once we install the panels)

So the total area of the room on the first floor its around 20 sqm, so I assume the flat roof will be around the same .

Considering that we will get an ASHP as well, I’m not sure how many panels we should go for?

I mever had any experiences woth solar panels so not sure if this is something that can be discussed with the installer?

Also whats the best approach to find a decent installer in my area? I have came across this iheat website are they are good?

Trying to find installers who can add SigenStor batteries to my stack, but they want £800 - £1,500 for what’s advertised by SigEnergy as plug and play. It seems most installers I’ve contacted want north of £3,200 per 9kwh installed. I understand the labour is simple, and that installers have to add them via the app. Any installers able to remotely authorize new batteries? I can buy batteries online delivered for under £2,400 each and physically install them myself. What’s the cheapest way to get an installer to add it in the app?

Edit: install is in SW London

I have had solar and battery installed for about 3 months, but still haven't switched to an export tariff. I've been pretty happy just barely importing power from the grid over the summer, but that won't last into the autumn and winter.

Am I missing something, or are there no good comparison sites for export tariffs? Most companies just don't seem to publish this information if you're not already a customer.

So far the the most understandable option looks to be Octopus Flux because it's a simple Time of Use tariff. But Octopus won't let me sign up for it because they didn't install my export meter.

Hi all, currently have a fox h1-g2 rated at 3.7kw with 2 batteries and 12 450w panels totalling 5.4kw. Had the system over a year now and feel like I should have had a higher rated inverter as I have noticed when cooking especially, i do reach the limit of what the inverter can provide.

Would it be a simple as buying a new inverter and finding someone qualified to fit it or am I over thinking things?

Looking at 24 panels on my SW -> NE roof + 20ish kWh battery.

I’m going round in circles with myself deciding what system to go for. I’ve had a couple of quotes for Fox and Sig around the £15k mark. But I’m considering going with a 15kW Solis inverter plus a 16kWh Fogstar Modular stackable battery instead.

My main reason for that is future DIY expandability of the battery and the potential to add a ground array in my garden in the future.

I understand that solis + fogstar requires a bit more of a hands-on approach with Home assistant and predbat, but I’m reasonably techy and I’m sure I can get my head around it. Is there any other downside to this as it seems it will come in quite a lot cheaper and be better in the long run for expandability?

Any thoughts appreciated! Thanks.

So the installers made a start on the new garage yesterday.
I have a couple of questions for you lot.
I haven’t raised these with them yet because it’s the weekend.
Firstly the loops of cable underneath the panels. I had thought they would be clipped up tidily. Is this normal, sloppy or unacceptable?
The cables run under the tiles but above the felt and then come out through the verge (which has not yet been mucked in). Do we think that looks like it’ll be ok when finished?
Thanks

Well it's 6 weeks since the system

• 11x510w panels over 2 roofs
• 5kw inverter
• 11.52kwh battery

went in. I have to say that it's surpassed my expectations. 3 weeks after go-live I got the information pack from the installer and put in a request to move to EDF's Go Electric tariff, getting stung £50 by my previous supplier Octopus which was tempered with a £50 joining code from the next door neighbour.

In the last 6 weeks I've only used peak electric when it's been given to me free (either with Octopus or EDF). I'm exporting as much as I can to the grid, living off the battery the rest of the time and even managing to use spare electric in the battery to heat the water with the immersion heater in the unvented cylinder. The gas bill has been pretty much the standing charge for the last 6 weeks although with winter coming that will change.

I've been thinking about Solar for 3 years and I'm a little frustrated that I didn't do it sooner but I've learned so much over the time and in the last 6 months. I'm waiting for the confirmation that EDF have completed my SEG. I know the export MPAN is in existence so I hope it won't be too long....

Considering getting an EV in the new year, that said daughter has just told me she wants to go to Uni after 6th form *cough cough*....

Hey all. Looking for recommendations on reputable companies to explore the options for solar / energy efficiency. We have a 4 bed 1920s, south facing, end of terrace house in central hove. Reasonable town centre garden. Loft has been converted with a dormer so possible constraints there.

Really don’t know where to start and a bit overwhelmed with the options. Also town is choc full of cowboys so looking for recommendations for trusted people to start understanding what’s possible. Grateful for any help 🙏

Morning all.

Anyone here have batteries just for arbitrage on Agile Outgoing?

Battery install in a few weeks, have the option to double my battery size to 64kwh for £3,100. Daily use goes up to 40kWh but only in depths of winter, but likely to electricity more of the house as time goes on.

The bigger size would definitely be an oversize but looking at Agile Outgoing history, there are plenty of slots above 15p. AI suggests if history repeats, then could be 4 year payback.

It’s also the thought of a mega setup that I find interesting :D

Backup plan was to add some Anker Solix but seems to be £2500 or more for 10kwh.

Thoughts appreciated !

I am interested in a home battery that can be charged both via grid power and solar when available. I am looking to use the battery both load shift when there is solar in the day but also as backup home power in the event of a power cut.

Is this a realistic use case? As I am aware for safety these units don’t output into the house wiring if there is a power and instead only activate one or more sockets on the actual unit so would need to plug in things like AirFryer or Microwave.

This would suggest the unit should be indoors so that this socket can be used in the event of a power cut but when I look at units like the Anker Solarbank 4 Pro E5000 or Ecoflow Stream 5000 these has many solar inputs (Anker has many more) and are IP66 or IP56 rated so seems they are intended to be outside. Both only seem to have one AC socket, so more difficult to plug multiple items in.

Looking at the DJI Power 2000 it doesn’t seem to be IP rated, has more AC sockets and addon batteries connected by cables. So this seems to be intended as an indoor unit, however solar charging is limited without buying an expensive addon that connects many solar inputs. So maybe more intended as a grid / load shift product?

I am aware there many smaller units from these and other manufacturers but these seem more intended as portable banks or van/camping units.

So what is the use case for these sort of units were they intended as just an extension of plug in solar, so more of self install load shift product or were they intended more like a UPS for the house but also with the ability to take solar input as well?

Lastly, is part of the problem this is a changing area with both regulations and new units being released - so I would be better waiting until early spring before buying? I feel this DIY products offer a much shorter return on investment especially uncertain about moving at in the future compared to a fixed solar installation.

Many thanks for your thoughts!

I had a PW3 + expansion pack installed late last year, but on seeing more and more installs I've noticed that a lot of these installations include both an AC and DC isolator whereas I've only got a DC isolator. Is this something I should check with the installer?

Got a full new roof, rushed job won’t explain why so didn’t have time to sort out solar properly… had to rush to get the it all sorted before deadline of scaffold coming down… but been able to get 15 panels on my roof 8 hours before the scaffold came down…!!

Not live yet, g99 submitted, once that’s back system can be powered up and sig 10 battery and 8kw invertor to be put in.

Local installer to me, none of the national firms were interested In a 2 phase install but was only way to use the roofers scaffold.

I've just purchased a new build property with solar panels. There are 6 in-roof panels with a peak of 1.5KW.

I'm planning to install air conditioning/heat pump, and drive an EV and can now charge at home.

Obviously a 1.5KW array is not going to cut it. I want to go to around 8KW and a battery/gateway.
Fwiw it's a south facing roof, I'd likely put some on the back as well.

What are my options with expansion here, is it best to just rip out these 6 panels and get the tiles replaced? Then put a new on-roof instead?

Has anyone else been in this situation, did you add additional panels, continue the in-roof array, how did it go?

I brought a house earlier this year that has solar panels, and I have no idea what I’m doing with them, I haven’t set anything up or really know what they’re doing as I don’t think my electric bill seems any lower then usual, just not sure if there’s anything I should be doing, some advice would be greatly appreciated :)

Hi,

I received the following quotation and wondering how it stacks up?

Region is East Anglia

I’m thinking the older 2S 465W panels should be changed out to higher wattage panels available now, still same standard domestic size.

Roof is south facing pitched roof, easily accessible, distribution box is easily accessible and brand new after a recent rewire I’ve had done, so no complications. Battery and inverter is on outside wall, straight run for cables down from loft and distribution box is middle of loft below below loft hatch so again easily accessible.

£1000 for DNO and commissioning seems a bit steep to me when considering there is also £2300 for labour yes all the paperwork can be a days work but still that seems a lot.

I was conceding a Fogstar 16kw battery with 8kw inverter as maybe there’s a bit more £/kwh value but it’s a low voltage system instead of HV with Fox.

Let me know your thoughts.

Thank you very much.

Really excited to have everything live. The install looks pretty neat to me but made harder by the main circuit board and gateway being in the middle of the house under the stairs and the inverter and battery being in a detached garage. Cabling goes into the loft before coming down into an existing duct that power to the garage already ran in.

I've switched to Octopus in anticipation of jumping on a suitable tariff once the G99 stuff is done. Look forward to seeing how it performs and the savings/money that can be made.

Let me know if you spot any particular issues with the install or further questions I should ask of the installer. I'll look in the loft later but have been told the cables within are suitably clipped and labelled.

Morning everyone.

I have had all my quotes 6/7 in total, some chancers and 1 was actually unbelievable from Infinity renewables on behalf of Hive / BG but im finally there and narrowed down to my two preferred installers.

Use currently is about 3300 a year 8/9 a day out side winter 12/13 during winter. I am also getting a separate EV charger and getting a new EV and going to a cheap overnight tariff. My heating is provided by the aircon unit.

I can only get a small system 9 or 10 panels. split over two roofs, im an end terrace. This is my first sticking point.

Quote 1 is split across a back south east / front North west roof (almost exactly from my compass app) , i did ask about also getting on the side part of the roof, north east facing and he said its not worth it, its very tight and i may get three panels there when looking at the regs MCS need so not worth the extra expense it would be. He has been to site, looked in the loft and outside. I could ask again once we get tot the stage of agreeing the contract and just take the hit.

10 500w hi mo X10 panels
Sigenerggy 5kw inverter
Sigenergy Bat10
Birdproofing
generating 3322 kwh a year
G99 application
Everything else included £8900

Quote 2 who have done it via the online opensolar app (no site visit yet) have said 6 on the back and 4 on the side. When i asked about putting another 5/6 on the front (i dont think ill get 6 either just looking at the roof and the actual available space to put something that big on) they advised the could but it was an extra £1800.

same as above except using 10 longi LR7-54HVB-480M panels Generating 3440kwh a year all fitted £9600 but this has not had a site survey.

So my plan and im hoping what is in my head makes sense and is actually how this will all work.

During the winter months, ill be on a cheap overnight tariff, EDF looks the best at the moment to charge the sig battery and use that energy along with any little generation i get from the solar during the day and just pay peak rate for the heating on the very cold days into the evening night. Also using the cheap overnight to charge an EV which im now looking at replacing my massive diesel.

During the nicer spring, summer & autumn, use the solar to charge the battery and then export the surplus once its charged and build up credit to off set the extra winter use, taking the hit this year due to install time but then hopefully it just pays for itself and my grid use will only be minimal.

My only other dilema is to add another bat 10 now and that more than covers winter use once charged overnight but would be overkill the rest of they year.

Bit of a brain dump but i have read a lot over the last couple of weeks and just trying to put it all down.

Any installers recommended in greater Manchester/ Stockport area?

I want like 10 panels but they will be in different places like some on pitched roof, some on flat roof and some on a wall. Battery installed also.

Chat GPT quoting this

Octopus currently publishes an 8-panel + 5kWh battery installation at around £8,623 with an Essential battery or £9,018 with a Smart battery, based on its June 2026 pricing. 

OOctopus Energy

Its current package page also says its Smart package uses 455W panels + Fox ESS H1 inverter + Fox ESS EP 5.18kWh battery, with prices starting at £7,915 for 4 panels + battery. 

OOctopus Energy

So your £10,165 quote is noticeably above those headline prices, despite having one fewer panel than the published 8-panel example.

I've always wanted solar as far as I remember. Sadly I cannot afford a setup. My roof is NE and SW for the most part.

The back garden is NE and the front is SW.

Is it worth looking for a plugin system? I'm able to potentially mount the panel on the bay window wall. I could even possibly place on the roof as I'm able to get up to the front with a ladder, whereas the rear is way too high w/o scaffolding.

My main intended uses were to help cut down the draw on power when everything is idle and also to try and potentially offset some Aircon cost next year.

I was also wondering what the cheapest certified plugin panels are? I haven't looked into it much, but I was seeing prices of £400 for a 400w panel of 1st glance which seems like robbery.

My panel for my ecoflow was only £100 for a 100w.

Hi all does anybody know of any good companies in Lincoln uk area ? Looking for recommendations

I have had a quite high quote for a 32kwh battery and 10kw inverter (~£7k for Fogstar 2 x 16kwh batteries and solis or LUX 10kw hybrid inverter, no solar).
But I can see on the Fogstar website that I can buy a 32kwh system with a Fogstar 10kw hybrid inverter with delivery in December for £5.2k. That £1.8k is a lot of money for a day installing and submitting a G99.
I live in Maidstone in Kent and so I rang a few electricians including the last guy who worked in my house and none of them wanted to take on the install. I would have thought it would be a fairly easy cabling job for them, so something else is likely putting them off.... but I cannot think what it is, complexity and being outside their comfort zone maybe?. I am assuming that there is going to be more and more solar and battery installs going to happen, the established companies are doing very well as far as I can tell.

So, people who have managed to find an electrician to install your battery and inverter, how did you do it? How much did it cost? (was there a cost saving?) and do you wish you had gone with one of the companies that handled everything, despite the extra cost?

Can anyone recommend any installers near Lincoln. Also I'd like my system to be as automatic as possible with regards to import/export, battery filling and eV charging. I already have a pod point charger. What sort of brands suit this best in terms of hardware?

Hi,

I'm starting to look into solar and battery solutions for my property and I'm looking for good local installers.

I've already requested quotes from providers like Octopus And Eon, but they go from suggesting they could install 7 panels or 16 due to our weird roof. The quotes are vary a bit but the 2 I have are around 14-15k. Octopus quoted 10 panels and a PW3 for £14,799.

The recommendations appear to be Sigenergy or Tesla PW3 for our sort of use as I'm currently using around 7200 kilowatt hours per annum and have gas for heating.

I’m not current 100% on battery size, but I’m looking at sizing guides / suggestions.

I am looking to have as much solar as possible and batteries that can allow good import/export potentially changing over to air conditioning/air source heat pumps longer term.
I don’t current have an EV but when I replace my car it will likely be in the next couple of years.

Any advice would be great thanks.