Solar Energy Concepts

System Guides

Find the right solar system for your roof and house size.

Find the Right Solar System for Your Home

Most solar guides give you generic advice. These guides do not. Each one is a worked example for a specific house size and roof orientation, with real component part numbers, string voltage checks, battery sizing, and ROI figures. Yield numbers come from PVGIS and three years of metered data across pitched, flat, and wall-mounted panels.

Every guide covers a budget option and a premium option, with three panel strategies each: best value (cheapest per watt), smallest footprint (fewest panels for tight roofs), and maximum overpanelling (lower-Voc panels to squeeze more onto each string). If you have not decided whether solar is right for your home yet, start here first.

Solar Energy Concepts System Rating

We score every system option against three metrics so you can compare at a glance:

Cost1 = accessible • 10 = premium only

12345678910

Consumption FitHow much of what you generate you actually use directly

LOWMIDHIGH

Tariff Exposure1 = ROI from self-consumption • 10 = depends on export rates

12345678910

A high-consumption household running a heat pump and EV will typically score low on tariff exposure (1-2) because they consume almost everything they generate. A system designed around Octopus Agile arbitrage with a large battery scores high (8-10) because the entire business case depends on half-hourly pricing staying favourable.

All Guides

System Guides

Solar Panels for a 4-Bedroom House with South-Facing Roof

South-facing is the UK’s highest-yield orientation (978 kWh/kWp/year per PVGIS). Still easy to overbuild.
Battery is the single biggest ROI lever. Without it, 60%+ of the midday peak exports at 5-12p.
Budget 3.6kW + 12 panels + 5kWh battery (£3,550 DIY) pays back in 3.9 years at typical 4-bed consumption.
Premium 5kW + 16 panels + 16kWh battery only earns out above ~5,000 kWh/year.

Read Entry →

System Guides

Solar Panels for a 3-Bedroom House with East/West Roof

East/west roofs lose about 19% of annual yield vs south, but the demand-curve match is often better for a typical 3-bed household.
A battery turns the midday lull into evening savings. The single biggest ROI lever on this roof.
The budget 3.6kW DIY build is £2,400 and pays back in 3.2 years on a typical 3-bed.
The premium 5kW + 16kWh build only makes sense with a heat pump or EV.

Read Entry →

System Guides

Solar Panels for a 4-Bedroom House with NW/SE Split Roof

NW/SE roofs produce about 75% of south-facing output, but the real-world gap is smaller on overcast UK days.
A battery is not optional. It turns exported-at-5p into used-at-28p, which is where the ROI lives.
The budget 3.6kW DIY build is £3,050 and pays back in 4 years on a typical 4-bed.
The premium 5kW build is for heat-pump or EV households. Don’t pay for it otherwise.

Read Entry →

System Guides

Solar Panels for a 2-Bedroom House with South-Facing Roof

South-facing 2-bed produces 978 kWh/kWp/year, the best case in the UK. Easy to over-build for a household that only uses 2,100 kWh/year.
The battery is where the ROI lives. Without one, south-facing midday surplus exports at 5-12p while you buy back at 28p.
Budget 3.6kW + 10 panels + 5.12kWh battery costs around £2,364 DIY and pays back in 3.5 years at typical 2-bed consumption.
Premium 5kW + 9.5kWh battery only earns out if you have a heat pump, EV, or both. Overkill for a low-consumption 2-bed.

Read Entry →

System Guides

Solar Panels for a 3-Bedroom House with North-Facing Roof

North roofs produce about 63% of south-facing yield per PVGIS. Not dead, but the economics only work in specific scenarios.
It pays back fast for high-consumption homes (heat pump, EV). It’s marginal for a 2,000-3,000 kWh household.
Budget 3.6kW + 12 panels + 5.12kWh battery costs £2,600 DIY and pays back in 4.6 years at typical consumption.
Premium 5kW + 16 panels + 16kWh battery only earns out if consumption is over 5,000 kWh/year.

Read Entry →