Solar panels are excellent tools for shrinking energy bills, lowering emissions, and reducing your reliance on the grid, but you’ll want to know first if your house is actually suitable for them.
- What Makes a House Suitable for Solar Panels?
- What Direction Does Your Roof Face?
- Is Your Roof at the Optimal Angle?
- Does Your Roof Get a Lot of Shade?
- Has Your Roof Got Enough Room for Solar Panels?
- Can Your Roof Hold Solar Panels?
- What if My Roof Is Flat?
- What Property Types are Most Suitable for Solar Panels?
- Can You Still Have Solar Panels If…
- How To Check Your Home’s Solar Potential
- What if Your Home Isn’t Ideal?
- What About Battery Storage?
Most homes in the UK are suitable for solar panels, and we’re going to explain exactly what makes a home suitable in this guide.
We’ll cover roof types, optimal roof conditions, what properties are and aren’t suitable for solar panels, and what you can do if your roof isn’t suitable for a solar system.
In the highly likely scenario your house is suitable for solar panels, guess what, we offer MCS-certified solar panel installation nationwide. Simply answer these questions, get your fixed price, and arrange your free design.
☀️ Key Points:
South-facing roofs are best for solar panels, but east and west-facing roofs can be fine too.
Roofs that spend a lot of time in the shade might not be ideal.
The optimal roof pitch for solar panels is 30–40°.
Flat roofs can get angled mounting brackets to compensate for this.
Not only do solar panels lower bills and carbon emissions, but you can profit from them via the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG).
What Makes a House Suitable for Solar Panels?
There are a few key factors affecting whether or not a house is suitable for solar panels. Let’s go over the main ones:
What Direction Does Your Roof Face?
If your roof is south-facing, you’ll already be ticking one of the most important suitability check boxes for solar panels. South-facing roofs are optimal because they receive the maximum amount of sunlight throughout the day.
East and west-facing roofs are still fine, to be clear, and solar panels on these roofs will continue to generate lots of clean electricity.
A north-facing roof won’t be able to generate the same amount of electricity as panels south, east, or west-facing roofs, but they’ll still work. You’ll just need to be aware that solar panels on a north-facing roof aren’t optimal (which is why we tend not to recommend them).
As you head further south in the UK however, the drawback of a north-facing roof diminishes.
Is Your Roof at the Optimal Angle?
Roof pitch is important for suitability too, with the ideal angle being 30–40°. This pitch allows solar panels to absorb as much sunlight as possible. Don’t worry too much if your roof isn’t between 30–40°, because solar panels can always be adjusted during the installation process.
Does Your Roof Get a Lot of Shade?
And then there’s the amount of shade your roof is under. Obviously for technology that relies on the sun, less shade is better, but you should be fine as long as your roof isn’t completely shaded throughout the day. Your installer will be able to accurately assess how much shade your roof is when they’re designing your system.
Has Your Roof Got Enough Room for Solar Panels?
You should have enough room for the number of solar panels you’ll need to meet your annual electricity needs. There’s little point getting just 2-3 solar panels after all.
A typical solar panel will take up 2m² of space and a solar panel array will need 40cm of space between it and the next array. The panels themselves only need around 3cm between them.
As the average surface area of a typical three-bedroom semi-detached property is 70m², you’ll generally have no problem fitting the number of solar panels you’ll need. For a 3.5 kilowatt peak (kWp) solar system (which’ll be enough for most three-bedroom homes), you’ll only need around 25-30m² of roof space.
Even if you go up to a 6 kWp solar system, you’ll still only take up 50-60m², so in general, roof space is rarely an issue to worry too much about.
Can Your Roof Hold Solar Panels?
Solar panels aren’t the heaviest objects around, but individual panels can still weigh 18-22kg on average and you’ll want to make sure your roof can support the combined bulk of a solar system.
You should make sure there isn’t any structural damage to your roof, and if the tiles on your roof are particularly old, it might be time to consider replacing them before getting solar panels. It can be a real hassle having to replace a roof after solar panels have already been installed.
What if My Roof Is Flat?
If your roof is flat, the best option you have for mounting a solar panel system is with angled arrays. These tilt the solar panels at the optimal angle, but they do take up more space on average than solar panels on a tilted roof.
This is because you don’t want one solar panel array casting shade over the one behind it, so enough space needs to be left between them. Your solar panel installer will work this out on your behalf, so you don’t generally need to worry much about it yourself.
What Property Types are Most Suitable for Solar Panels?
Not all homes are created equal when it comes to installing solar panels, and some property types will always be more suitable for solar panels.
Detached or semi-detached homes are the ideal, because they provide easy roof access, usually have more space, and offer more flexibility for solar installations (such as being able to put them on the roofs of garages, for example).
Terraced homes tend to be fine too, but you’ll need to consider available space and access. You’ll have less choice as to where your panels are installed on a terraced property, and because of limited roof space, you likely won’t be able to install a solar panel system bigger than 5kWp. That being said, most terraced homes won’t need a system that size anyway.
Installing solar panels on flats is where it gets a bit tricker, because it’ll depend on who owns the roof of the flat. You can’t decide on solar panels for the entire building yourself (unless you own the flats), so you’ll need to get permission from either your landlord or the owner of the building.
It’s a little easier if you’re on the top floor (some authorities or managing agents allow this), but if you live in the middle or lower flats, you almost certainly won’t be able to legally install solar panels.
For listed buildings and homes in conservation areas, you’ll likely have to get planning permission for solar panels. Specifically, you need to first apply for listed building consent, and then, planning permission to get solar panels on your roof.
These hurdles exist to help preserve the character and history of certain buildings, but it unfortunately makes it a lot more difficult for people in listed or historic buildings to make their homes more energy efficient.
If you don’t live in a listed/historic building, or a property in a conservation area, then you’ll almost certainly be fine – solar panels are considered permitted developments these days.
Explore a Solar Case Study: Check out an insightful Q&A session featured in one of our detailed case studies on domestic solar panels. Hear directly from a Heatable customer in the UK and gain valuable perspectives on their experience here.
The image above shows a 23-panel solar installation, carried out by the MCS-certified solar team at Heatable, featuring the REA Fusion2 solar panels.
Can You Still Have Solar Panels If…
[1] Your roof isn’t south facing
Yes, you can absolutely still get solar panels on a roof that isn’t south facing, but just be aware you won’t be able to generate as much electricity. West and east-facing roofs are usually fine for generating enough electricity to meet most needs, though north-facing panels will struggle.
We tend to advise against getting solar panels on a north-facing roof, because the lower power output generally isn’t worth the initial upfront cost.
Read more:
[2] There’s some shading
While no shade is ideal, you can still generate lots of clean energy with a roof that is partially shaded.
Something to consider is that if your roof is shaded by trees or shrubbery, it might be worth removing them or trimming back. Obviously it’s better for the planet not to remove the trees, but you could have to if the shading is significant enough to drastically limit your solar system’s ability to power your home.
[3] The roof is old or in poor condition
A roof that’s either too old or in poor condition will probably need replacing or repairing before you get solar panels. If you choose to install solar panels before replacing or repairing a roof, you could find yourself paying more than you’d need to to remove and subsequently reinstall your solar system.
Think about the bigger picture – get your roof in check before you commit to solar, and you’ll enjoy many years of clean electricity without an intermission.
[4] You’re a tenant
If you rent your property, ultimately it’s up to your landlord as to whether or not you can get solar panels. Also, when you consider the long payback period (12–16 years on average), getting solar panels in a rented property probably isn’t worth it.
Solar panels cost around £8,000 for a typical 4kWp system, which is a lot to pay when there’s every chance you won’t be around to reap the full benefits. It’s a lot of work to remove a solar panel system to then reinstall on a new property too. And, if you move to a different rented property, there’s no guarantee your landlord will allow you to install your solar panels there.
Your best bet is to try to see if your landlord would pay to install solar panels. However unlikely this may sound, you can try telling your landlord about available solar panel grants and the fact that they can profit from excess electricity generated via the Smart Export Guarantee. Worth a shot anyway!
How To Check Your Home’s Solar Potential
Before you commit to getting solar panels on your roof, you’ll want to get an idea of your home’s solar potential. This can be done via helpful tools such as Solar Wizard or PVGIS, which roughly calculate how much solar energy your home could generate, what the energy bill savings might be, and how long it’d take to pay back the cost of a solar system.
We’ve got our own tool too, which lets you draw an overlay over your roof, so we can tell you how many solar panels you might need and how much you could reduce your monthly bills by. You’ll get a fixed price as well, which includes everything – even the scaffolding!
There’s also the option of a professional survey, which will assess your home’s suitability for solar as well as letting you know how much energy you could generate. It usually only takes a couple hours and involves the surveyor collecting essential information on your home’s energy usage, roof suitability, and existing electrical infrastructure.
Read more:
What if Your Home Isn’t Ideal?
Sometimes the harsh (sun)light of reality means your home just isn’t suitable for roof-mounted solar panels, but this doesn’t have to be the end of your solar journey. Here’s what you can consider if your home isn’t ideal for solar panels:
Ground-Mounted Solar Panels
If you have the space in your garden, there’s always the possibility of a ground-mounted solar system.
A ground-mounted system could even be more efficient, as you’re able to manually position them to the most optimal angle possible. And, they’re a lot easier to maintain and repair, as there’s no need for roof access.
The major downside to ground-mounted solar panels is the fact you’ll need planning permission – unless they’re installed no higher than four metres high, and five metres from your property’s limits.
You can also only have one standalone installation per property, so you’d need to fit in all the panels you’d want in a single location.
Finally, if you live in a conservation area, ground-mounted solar panels must not be visible from the road.
What About Battery Storage?
Another option if your home isn’t suitable for solar panels is to consider battery storage. Sure battery storage works fantastically with solar panels, but battery storage still works well without solar panels.
This is because you can use your battery to store electricity during off-peak times (typically in the middle of the night), when electricity is at its cheapest. You can then use this electricity when prices would normally be at their highest, saving money overall on your energy bills.
Be aware that you’d need a time of use tariff (or really any tariff that lets you pay less for electricity during off-peak times) to take advantage of this strategy.
Read more:
Community Solar and Greener Energy Suppliers
There’s also the prospect of getting involved in a community solar initiative, which is where a community comes together to invest as shareholders into a local renewable energy project. Members of the community invest, then directly benefit from reduced energy bills and clean electricity.
To find out if there are any community solar initiatives happening in your area, you should contact your local council. Another similar scheme is Solar Together, which is a group-buying initiative where homeowners can reduce the cost of solar panels by buying together in bulk (though this would still require a property that is suitable for installing solar panels on).
Lastly, you can always think about swapping to a greener energy supplier. Lots of energy suppliers these days are capable of providing electricity entirely from renewable energy sources, so you can boil your kettle safe in the knowledge that you haven’t had to burn fossil fuels to do so.
What To Do Next? 🏡☀️
If your home is suitable for solar panels, and you’re thinking of installing them, you can get the process started by getting a quote. As MCS-certified solar panel installers, we can help.
Simply fill in our online quote form with a few details about your home, and we’ll give you a fixed-price, obligation-free quote for solar panels (and battery storage if you want it!). Once that’s sorted, we’ll send out one of our expert solar surveyors to assess your home.
They’ll go over all the important bits and bobs, such as how much energy you use, where the best place on your roof for solar panels is, and an exact calculation for how big a solar system you’ll need.
Remember, none of this means you have to go ahead with installation.
For more information on solar panels, refer to the following guides to help you get a better idea about solar:
You can also head over to our advice section, check out our YouTube channel for informative videos, or read a customer case study to see how others have benefited from their solar installation.
