Domestic suitability

You must have a suitable location for solar panels. This is typically a building roof of at least 15 sq meters and it must face towards the South not North. Anywhere between East and West is fine as long as it is not towards the north.

The area in question must not be shaded, even a chimney casting shade will ruin the system output.

It is possible to mount solar PV panels on the ground using frames to angle them towards the sun.

Horizontal panel mounting is effective but their self-cleaning feature will not work.

You must also have a power company Meter Point Access Number (MPAN), it will be on your bill. Many potential customers on campus sites such as MOD or university campus are sub-metered and are not permitted to take advantage of solar PV income.

Solar panels cannot be attached to tile roofs that do not have a membrane underneath. As the brackets disturb the tiles they will leak with wind driven rain. Some roofs also need extra timber for support.

The ideal home roof for solar panels is over 30 sq metres in size, faces South and has a pitch of 35 degrees with no shade. This is the roof that roof rental companies are looking for to take all the income from you.

If a property has 3-phase electrics and over 75 sq metres of space then 10kW of solar power can be accommodated which provides the highest possible return on investment.