Solar Panels
What are Solar Panels?
Solar Panels work by using the energy in the sun's rays to generate electricity. Modern Solar Panel systems are much more efficient at generating tangible electricity than their predecessors. New Mono Solar Panels can even generate electricity when it’s cloudy, making them a fantastic choice for UK homeowners who want to reduce their carbon footprint and lower their energy bills all year round.
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This system can be installed with a battery that is charged by the Solar Panels which can then be used to power your home at night. You can also sell the energy back to the grid that you don’t use.
How do Solar Panels Work?
The science behind Solar Panels is fascinating! Photovoltaic cells that generate the electricity are placed between layers of semi-conducting materials (normally silicone), these layers make up the surface of the Solar Panel System. When photons from sunlight contact each layer, their unique electronic properties energize and produce an electric current. This is also known as the photoelectric effect.
The direct current (or DC for short) is then passed through an inverter which changes the current to an alternating current (AC). This allows the electricity to be used in your home, or it can be stored using a Solar Battery for use later if there is no demand for it. Alternatively, the electricity you do not use can be sold back to the national grid with the government's Smart Export Guarantee, meaning you’ll be paid for every unit of electricity that you output to the grid.
Energy from the sun is converted to direct current electricity by the solar panels.
The direct current (DC) electricity is passed through an inverter that turns it into an alternating current (AC) that can be used by your home's appliances.
The electricity can then be used by your home, stored for later with a battery or sold to the national grid.
Can I sell the electricity I don’t use?
Yes, you can! With the government's Smart Export Guarantee, you can actually sell the surplus energy that your home does not use back to the grid. To take advantage of this you will need your solar panel system fitted through an MCS-accredited installer (which are the only ones we’ll ever recommend).
You also need to switch to a special energy tariff with an energy supplier, this is separate from the tariff you use for your energy and gas use.
Our team can help to provide advice as to which are the best tariffs out there at the moment so that you get the best deal for your energy exports.
When you get in touch with us, we will give you all of the information you need, including what government grants are available, so that you can make an independent and informed decision about your project.
If you are interested in a renewable energy product, we will arrange for one of our accredited installers to come out to visit your property to give you all the technical information that you need and answer any questions that you may have.
A technical survey will then be arranged for you, this will include things like heat loss calculations for heating systems and energy generation estimates for a solar system. This will give you the numbers and data that you need to know what you can expect from a renewable system.
If you decide to go ahead with an installation, we will grant you access to our list of trusted and verified installers for free, you can rest assured that all of our installers have to meet our rigorous standards, ensuring that you receive a quality installation by quality tradespeople.
