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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in BH24 (New Forest)

See if solar pays off for you in New Forest — price, savings and payback in under a minute (official UK data).

Solar Calculator

Change the settings below to see how costs and savings work for your situation.

System Size

Roof Direction

Battery Storage

Export Value

Your Numbers

Break-even
11.6 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£12,207
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£1,051
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£14,074
After paying itself off, you're this much ahead

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How we calculate this

Solar generation: Based on typical south-facing roof at 35° angle. We account for weather, dirt, and system losses (14%).

How much you'll use directly:

  • Without battery: You'll use about 40% of what you generate. The rest gets sold back to the grid.
  • With 5 kWh battery: You'll use about 70% (battery stores extra for evening use).
  • With 10 kWh battery: You'll use about 75% (more storage means less exported).
  • Panel-only payback: Bigger systems don’t shorten payback—cost and savings rise together per kW.
  • Battery & payback: Batteries raise self-use and cut bills, but added hardware cost often lengthens break-even at typical UK rates.
  • When a battery can still make sense:
    • Evening-heavy usage patterns
    • Time-of-use tariffs / cheap night rates
    • Low export rate vs. high unit rate
    • Heat pump or EV charging synergy
    • Optional backup/resilience (system-dependent)
    • Lower evening-hour CO₂ vs. grid

Costs: Battery prices are typically £700 per kWh. Export tariffs vary by supplier (usually 5–15p per kWh).

Grid connection: Systems up to about 3.7 kW typically need just a notification (G98). Larger systems may need permission (G99).

These are typical values based on average usage patterns. Your actual results will vary based on your roof, shading, and how you use electricity.

Your area in context

In Southern, the current unit rate is 26.48p/kWh with a 44.62p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 1056 kWh/kW — 55 above the regional median (1001).

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 6.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 1056 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.5p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.5p/kWh
Standing charge
44.6p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1056 kWh/kW
Export price (baseline)
10p/kWh

Browse the scenarios below. Each battery size has its own expand — open the one that matches your plan (or just explore). For each system size (2–8 kW) we show annual output, how much you use directly, what gets exported, annual benefit, upfront cost, break-even, and a 20-year net. Negative numbers are possible — that’s the honest trade-off when adding more battery than your usage profile justifies.

No battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £876, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 11.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2112 kWh 845 kWh 1267 kWh £224 £127 £350 £4,069 11.6 yrs £2,939
3 kW 3168 kWh 1267 kWh 1901 kWh £336 £190 £526 £6,104 11.6 yrs £4,409
4 kW 4224 kWh 1690 kWh 2534 kWh £447 £253 £701 £8,138 11.6 yrs £5,878
5 kW 5280 kWh 2112 kWh 3168 kWh £559 £317 £876 £10,173 11.6 yrs £7,348
6 kW 6336 kWh 2534 kWh 3801 kWh £671 £380 £1,051 £12,207 11.6 yrs £8,818
7 kW 7392 kWh 2957 kWh 4435 kWh £783 £444 £1,226 £14,242 11.6 yrs £10,287
8 kW 8448 kWh 3379 kWh 5069 kWh £895 £507 £1,402 £16,276 11.6 yrs £11,757

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

3 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,050, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 11.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2112 kWh 1267 kWh 845 kWh £336 £84 £420 £6,169 14.7 yrs £2,231
3 kW 3168 kWh 1901 kWh 1267 kWh £503 £127 £630 £8,204 13.0 yrs £4,397
4 kW 4224 kWh 2534 kWh 1690 kWh £671 £169 £840 £10,238 12.2 yrs £6,563
5 kW 5280 kWh 3168 kWh 2112 kWh £839 £211 £1,050 £12,273 11.7 yrs £8,729
6 kW 6336 kWh 3801 kWh 2534 kWh £1,007 £253 £1,260 £14,307 11.4 yrs £10,894
7 kW 7392 kWh 4435 kWh 2957 kWh £1,174 £296 £1,470 £16,342 11.1 yrs £13,060
8 kW 8448 kWh 5069 kWh 3379 kWh £1,342 £338 £1,680 £18,376 10.9 yrs £15,226

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,137, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 12.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2112 kWh 1478 kWh 634 kWh £391 £63 £455 £7,569 16.6 yrs £1,528
3 kW 3168 kWh 2218 kWh 950 kWh £587 £95 £682 £9,604 14.1 yrs £4,041
4 kW 4224 kWh 2957 kWh 1267 kWh £783 £127 £910 £11,638 12.8 yrs £6,555
5 kW 5280 kWh 3696 kWh 1584 kWh £979 £158 £1,137 £13,673 12.0 yrs £9,069
6 kW 6336 kWh 4435 kWh 1901 kWh £1,174 £190 £1,364 £15,707 11.5 yrs £11,583
7 kW 7392 kWh 5174 kWh 2218 kWh £1,370 £222 £1,592 £17,742 11.1 yrs £14,096
8 kW 8448 kWh 5913 kWh 2534 kWh £1,566 £253 £1,819 £19,776 10.9 yrs £16,610

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

7.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,163, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 13.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2112 kWh 1542 kWh 570 kWh £408 £57 £465 £9,319 20.0 yrs £-14
3 kW 3168 kWh 2313 kWh 855 kWh £612 £86 £698 £11,354 16.3 yrs £2,605
4 kW 4224 kWh 3083 kWh 1140 kWh £816 £114 £931 £13,388 14.4 yrs £5,223
5 kW 5280 kWh 3854 kWh 1426 kWh £1,021 £143 £1,163 £15,423 13.3 yrs £7,841
6 kW 6336 kWh 4625 kWh 1711 kWh £1,225 £171 £1,396 £17,457 12.5 yrs £10,459
7 kW 7392 kWh 5396 kWh 1996 kWh £1,429 £200 £1,628 £19,492 12.0 yrs £13,077
8 kW 8448 kWh 6167 kWh 2281 kWh £1,633 £228 £1,861 £21,526 11.6 yrs £15,695

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

10 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,181, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 14.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2112 kWh 1584 kWh 528 kWh £419 £53 £472 £11,069 23.4 yrs £-1,624
3 kW 3168 kWh 2376 kWh 792 kWh £629 £79 £708 £13,104 18.5 yrs £1,063
4 kW 4224 kWh 3168 kWh 1056 kWh £839 £106 £944 £15,138 16.0 yrs £3,751
5 kW 5280 kWh 3960 kWh 1320 kWh £1,049 £132 £1,181 £17,173 14.5 yrs £6,439
6 kW 6336 kWh 4752 kWh 1584 kWh £1,258 £158 £1,417 £19,207 13.6 yrs £9,127
7 kW 7392 kWh 5544 kWh 1848 kWh £1,468 £185 £1,653 £21,242 12.9 yrs £11,815
8 kW 8448 kWh 6336 kWh 2112 kWh £1,678 £211 £1,889 £23,276 12.3 yrs £14,502

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

13.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,198, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 16.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2112 kWh 1626 kWh 486 kWh £431 £49 £479 £13,519 28.2 yrs £-3,935
3 kW 3168 kWh 2439 kWh 729 kWh £646 £73 £719 £15,554 21.6 yrs £-1,178
4 kW 4224 kWh 3252 kWh 971 kWh £861 £97 £958 £17,588 18.4 yrs £1,580
5 kW 5280 kWh 4065 kWh 1214 kWh £1,077 £121 £1,198 £19,623 16.4 yrs £4,337
6 kW 6336 kWh 4879 kWh 1457 kWh £1,292 £146 £1,438 £21,657 15.1 yrs £7,094
7 kW 7392 kWh 5692 kWh 1700 kWh £1,507 £170 £1,677 £23,692 14.1 yrs £9,852
8 kW 8448 kWh 6505 kWh 1943 kWh £1,722 £194 £1,917 £25,726 13.4 yrs £12,609

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

Figures are illustrative and use the same method as the calculator above. For exact results, adjust your roof direction, tariff, and usage in the calculator.

Insights for BH24

Figures below are tailored to BH24 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #173 of 2182
6.3 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~13 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #207 of 2997
10.1 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£1,208 /yr • £12,207 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #58 of 2997
13.5% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£163 fixed • ~£1,208 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.48p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
44.62p/day
Local Sunshine
1056kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1056 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
6.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 56% • Flats: 16% • Bungalows: 27% Based on 6,184 properties

Coverage

New Forest (77%)|Dorset (23%)

Areas Covered

Ringwood North & Ellingham, Ringwood South, St Leonards & St Ives, Bransgore, Burley, Sopley & Ringwood East, Commons

Data Sources & Assumptions

Solar yield: PVGIS (EU Joint Research Centre), January 2025 data

Electricity rates: Ofgem price cap, Q4 2025

Installation costs: MCS certified installer data, March 2025

Property data: EPC open data (Open Government Licence), aggregated

All estimates are typical values. Actual results vary based on your specific situation, roof characteristics, and usage patterns.

Compare nearby areas

Nearby in Southern

BH31 (Dorset)
≈6.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,030 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BH24
BH22 (Dorset)
≈8.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,055 kWh/kWp · -0% vs BH24
SP6 (New Forest)
≈9.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,013 kWh/kWp · -4% vs BH24
BH23 (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole)
≈11.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,089 kWh/kWp · +3% vs BH24
BH10 (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole)
≈12.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,075 kWh/kWp · +2% vs BH24
BH9 (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole)
≈12.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,087 kWh/kWp · +3% vs BH24

Similar sunshine across the UK

TN12 (Tunbridge Wells)
~1,056 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BH24
SS0 (Southend-on-Sea)
~1,056 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BH24
IP13 (East Suffolk)
~1,056 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BH24