Is Solar A Good Financial Investment? A Year Reflection Of Costs

At the start of 2022 we invested in solar for our house. We got the panels installed in April and then the battery at the end of the summer. We’d wanted to get solar for our house from the off. And with the prices of electricity set to increase considerably in April 2022 it seemed like the right time for us.

We got in quite early getting our solar before demand soared and prices increased for panels and batteries. The only thing I wish is that we got the battery right at the beginning as we missed out on the peak summer months for generation. So during those months we did pay a bit more for electricity as outside of sunlight hours we were taking it from the grid. But we only waited a few months, so worth it in the end.

As we’ve had our full system (including battery) for a year I thought I’d reflect back on the costs and whether it’s really been worth it for us.

How much our solar cost

For our full installation of the solar we paid just over £13,000 this included all of the set up, the tech, the panels and other add on’s like guards to stop birds going underneath etc. And then we paid just under £6,5000 for our battery and installation later in the year. So in total the whole thing cost us about £19,500.

This is a huge amount of money to spend, but we justified it because we’re planning to be in our home for a long time. It’s pretty much our forever home so we don’t mind investing money into it.

And with prices of electricity going up it was set to pay for itself much quicker than systems a decade ago would have.

How much we’ve paid in electricity

We are on a tariff with our energy supplier (Octopus) where we get very quick electricity in the middle of the night. Currently we pay 9p a kWh during the four hours at night compared to standard costs that are currently around 30-35p per kWh.

So during the night if our battery isn’t fill it’s topped up with this check electricity. This means that we’re covered for all of the electricity we use in the night when it’s not sunny, and it helps us during the darker months when there’s less sunshine.

We do still have to pay a standard standing charge like everyone else. But over the past year (October 2022- September 2023) we have paid a total of £520 in electricity.  For the first 4-5 months we were still finding our feet with the set up of the battery and when it was filling up so this figure should be lower the next year.

Vs how we would have paid in electricity

Looking at the same period above, we have used 4946 kWh or 4.946 mWh of electricity which if we got this totally from the grid at an average of 33p per kWh this would have cost us £1.632.18. If you add the standing charge for a year to this it gives a total of £1,785.

As you can see it’s a huge difference between what we paid having solar vs if we didn’t have solar. And this doesn’t account for the fluctuation of prices as I know energy prices were higher last year. So this number should definitely be higher. When we got quotes for our energy bills before solar it estimated around £300 a month. And when we’ve had solar the most we’ve used is £75 so that’s a 75% saving.

Selling electricity back to the grid

During the daytime when we are producing electricity if we can’t use it and our battery is full we sell it back to the grid. Before we had our battery we sold a lot back to the grid as we couldn’t use it all. But now we store a good amount of our surplus production.

Over the same period of time above we have earned £58 from selling energy back to the grid. And the great thing about this is not only do we get some money from it but we’re giving back sustainably produced energy.

Sustainability view

Saving money was the top priority for us, but sustainability also played a part in our decision to get solar. Knowing that we can power ourselves and be doing our bit was a massive plus for us.

Within the app that we use to control our solar we can see how we have helped the environment. Based on our usage, since we started using our solar in April 2022 we have saved 1,277 kg of CO2 emissions. This is the equivalent of planting 77 trees.

For a single household these numbers are massive, and make us happy that we’re doing our bit.

Was installing solar worth it for us?

Over the past year we have saved at least £1,150 on our energy bill, and that’s based on today’s energy prices and not the highs we’ve had over the past year.

For us both the money saving and sustainability aspects to having solar are 100% worth the price that we paid. We know that in the coming years we’ll have made back what we spent initially and be powering our home for close to free.

Have you got solar, or have you ever considered it?