Roughly three years ago to the day, we invested in a set of solar panels, along with an inverter and battery. Although I did a two year review last year, I’ve decided to do another one as we’ve reached the point where we’ve recouped 25% of our initial investment.
Back in 2023, the system we had installed cost around £11,000. We paid for most of it out of savings, topped up with a contribution from my parents and the rest was borrowed. We finished paying off the borrowed money at the end of 2024. So, on the basis that it has taken us three years to get to 25%, it means the full return on investment will probably take another 9 years. By then, we’ll still have a couple of years left on the mortgage, and our ten-year-old may or may not have left home by then.
Our system is from SolaX, and although they provide an app, I also transpose the data each month into a spreadsheet. What is notable is that 2023 was our best year – for example, in May 2023, our total savings were £136.78, made up of £85.90 of saved electricity and £50.88 of exported electricity. Over the course of the entire year, we saved £855.45.
Savings in 2024 were lower – £750.79. And last year was only a few pence higher at £750.96. Indeed, the weather last month was pretty terrible, as we only saved £11.43 and didn’t export anything. Suffice to say, we’ve already saved more this month with several days left to go. On average, our system saves us £65.48 per month on our electricity bill, and in some of the summer months, we actually get a net negative electricity bill as we export more than we use.
One thing we haven’t yet done is have our solar panels cleaned. It may be that, after being cleaned, they may allow more light in. However, having spoken to others online, they’ve found that it makes very little difference.
I think it’s important to be open about the savings we’re making. Whilst prices have come down – a similar system may cost around £9000 now – getting solar is a big investment, especially when paired with a battery. As such, I hope this information is useful if you’re considering getting solar and have a suitable property.
@nrturner are you doing any sort of optimisation on the battery for cheap charging or expensive export for example?
No, I’m just on a simple export tariff. Mainly because our smart meter hasn’t worked in nearly a year and we’re still waiting for an engineer to come to look at it.