Answers to common solar energy system installation questions.
When most people think of installing solar panels they just think of the panels on roof. However there is a lot more to consider in the installation of a solar energy system apart from the panels themselves with the cabling, inverter, export meter, potentially battery storage and an EV charger to consider. Or more than one of each of these.
Peace Of Mind Installation
Although all this may sound complicated our experienced installers will make installation simple for you.
Installation follows a set of straightforward steps. Time to complete an installation depends on the size of the system and location, so typical residential and small commercial installations take 2 to 3 days, while larger commercial installations with more panels, cabling, inverters etc will take longer.
Easy Steps
- Along with your system design, we compete a survey to check positioning, suitability of the materials, where cables will run etc.
- A couple of days before the actual installation, if required, scaffolding and other access equipment will arrive and be constructed ready for the actual installation.
- Installation starts on the agreed date, the equipment / materials required will arrive on site to be installed.
- After the installation is completed, the solar equipment will be commissioned and activated in the monitoring app.
- A couple of days after installation the scaffolding will be taken down. This allows us to monitor the first days and check everything with access to the roof in the unlikely scenario something may need checking in the system.
Other Aspects Of Installation
The other equipment for solar energy systems is usually hidden away, common places for inverters and batteries are in garages or hidden in cupboards. We don’t normally install inverters and batteries in enclosed roof spaces like a loft, as they can get very hot in the summer reducing efficiency or causing the inverter to shut down, not what you want on a sunny generation day. Please let us know where you would like the equipment to be installed when we survey the property.
If the solar panels are being installed on a roof, due to the heights our install team require scaffolding to safely work. The scaffolding system will be installed before the installation is due to start and be taken down a couple of days after the installation is planned to finish to allow for contingency in case of external factors affecting the installation e.g. poor weather that is unsafe to work in.
If equipment is installed in the roof space then the installation team will require access to it, or where ever the equipment is being install. And don’t forget the meter and fuse boards so the system can be wired into your house.
Solar System Installation FAQs
If your property is not in a conservation area or listed, solar panels can be installed on it.
For listed properties or in conservation areas, planning permission will generally be needed. For ground mount systems planning permission may also be required too.
The best location to install solar panels is where the panels have a direct view of sun and is not heavily shaded.
Ideally the roof or place you are going to install solar panels should be South, South East or South West facing. Solar panels can be installed on East or West facing roofs, although they may produce slightly less electricity.
Solar panels can be fitted to almost every type of roof whether sharply pitched, slightly angled or flat.
Tiled roofs with a pitch between 20 and 50 degrees are ideal. Slate tile roofs take slightly longer to install due to the way the slates are attached to the battens. On shallow pitched and flat roofs solar panels are installed with a different type of mounting system that angles the panels.
The only necessary requirement is the installers are able to access the roof easily. This is usually done with scaffolding.
For a standard home installation takes between one and three days depending on the size of the system and complexity of installation. If you have a larger or more complicated system then it may be longer, the survey will highlight this and the installation team will let you know.
For commercial installation the solar installer will advise you on the expected installation time when they survey the property as part of the quoting process as no two installs are the same.
No. The installation team will bring everything they need from the solar system equipment to the tools required.
All you need to provide is access for them to work.
Solar panels generally require minimal maintenance. In the UK the rain does a good job of washing dust of the panels, but it is a good idea to check debris build up e.g. bird poop. Another easy check is to see if the panels have been put in the shade by trees growing etc which may then require a trim.
You can also check for issues by monitoring the system's performance.
If you would like extra reassurance that your solar system is working optimally, maintenance packages are available.
Modern solar panels are built to last out of toughened materials designed to cope with the worst of the weather. Many panels have a 20 to 25 year warranty.
However like the appliances and gadgets we use everyday, solar panels will continue generating after the warranty period is over, so they are a long term investment that will keep paying back for years.
If you have the space it is always possible to add more panels but this is not a straightforward process as the rest of your equipment may need upgrading too.
By using a solar installation company who can understand your requirements now and going forward, they can design a system to meet your needs to save unnecessary costs later.
Although technically possible, it is recommended to use professional solar installers who have knowledge of the equipment, regulations, are electrically qualified, can certify your panels (some Feed In Tariff companies require this before connecting your panels up for payment) and will use all this experience to design the optimal solar system for you needs.
