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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in BN26 (Wealden)

See if solar pays off for you in Wealden — 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
10.5 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£12,207
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£1,162
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£16,843
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 South East, the current unit rate is 26.92p/kWh with a 47.60p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 1155 kWh/kW — 126 above the regional median (1029).

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 1155 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.9p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.9p/kWh
Standing charge
47.6p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1155 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: £968, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 10.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2310 kWh 924 kWh 1386 kWh £249 £139 £387 £4,069 10.5 yrs £3,678
3 kW 3465 kWh 1386 kWh 2079 kWh £373 £208 £581 £6,104 10.5 yrs £5,516
4 kW 4620 kWh 1848 kWh 2772 kWh £497 £277 £775 £8,138 10.5 yrs £7,355
5 kW 5775 kWh 2310 kWh 3465 kWh £622 £346 £968 £10,173 10.5 yrs £9,194
6 kW 6930 kWh 2772 kWh 4158 kWh £746 £416 £1,162 £12,207 10.5 yrs £11,033
7 kW 8085 kWh 3234 kWh 4851 kWh £871 £485 £1,356 £14,242 10.5 yrs £12,872
8 kW 9240 kWh 3696 kWh 5544 kWh £995 £554 £1,549 £16,276 10.5 yrs £14,710

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: £1,164, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 10.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2310 kWh 1386 kWh 924 kWh £373 £92 £465 £6,169 13.3 yrs £3,141
3 kW 3465 kWh 2079 kWh 1386 kWh £560 £139 £698 £8,204 11.7 yrs £5,761
4 kW 4620 kWh 2772 kWh 1848 kWh £746 £185 £931 £10,238 11.0 yrs £8,382
5 kW 5775 kWh 3465 kWh 2310 kWh £933 £231 £1,164 £12,273 10.5 yrs £11,002
6 kW 6930 kWh 4158 kWh 2772 kWh £1,119 £277 £1,396 £14,307 10.2 yrs £13,623
7 kW 8085 kWh 4851 kWh 3234 kWh £1,306 £323 £1,629 £16,342 10.0 yrs £16,243
8 kW 9240 kWh 5544 kWh 3696 kWh £1,492 £370 £1,862 £18,376 9.9 yrs £18,864

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: £1,261, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 10.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2310 kWh 1617 kWh 693 kWh £435 £69 £505 £7,569 15.0 yrs £2,523
3 kW 3465 kWh 2425 kWh 1039 kWh £653 £104 £757 £9,604 12.7 yrs £5,534
4 kW 4620 kWh 3234 kWh 1386 kWh £871 £139 £1,009 £11,638 11.5 yrs £8,545
5 kW 5775 kWh 4042 kWh 1732 kWh £1,088 £173 £1,261 £13,673 10.8 yrs £11,557
6 kW 6930 kWh 4851 kWh 2079 kWh £1,306 £208 £1,514 £15,707 10.4 yrs £14,568
7 kW 8085 kWh 5659 kWh 2425 kWh £1,523 £243 £1,766 £17,742 10.0 yrs £17,579
8 kW 9240 kWh 6468 kWh 2772 kWh £1,741 £277 £2,018 £19,776 9.8 yrs £20,591

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: £1,291, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 11.9 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2310 kWh 1686 kWh 624 kWh £454 £62 £516 £9,319 18.0 yrs £1,007
3 kW 3465 kWh 2529 kWh 936 kWh £681 £94 £774 £11,354 14.7 yrs £4,136
4 kW 4620 kWh 3373 kWh 1247 kWh £908 £125 £1,033 £13,388 13.0 yrs £7,264
5 kW 5775 kWh 4216 kWh 1559 kWh £1,135 £156 £1,291 £15,423 11.9 yrs £10,393
6 kW 6930 kWh 5059 kWh 1871 kWh £1,362 £187 £1,549 £17,457 11.3 yrs £13,521
7 kW 8085 kWh 5902 kWh 2183 kWh £1,589 £218 £1,807 £19,492 10.8 yrs £16,650
8 kW 9240 kWh 6745 kWh 2495 kWh £1,816 £249 £2,065 £21,526 10.4 yrs £19,779

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: £1,310, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 13.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2310 kWh 1732 kWh 577 kWh £466 £58 £524 £11,069 21.1 yrs £-587
3 kW 3465 kWh 2599 kWh 866 kWh £700 £87 £786 £13,104 16.7 yrs £2,620
4 kW 4620 kWh 3465 kWh 1155 kWh £933 £115 £1,048 £15,138 14.4 yrs £5,827
5 kW 5775 kWh 4331 kWh 1444 kWh £1,166 £144 £1,310 £17,173 13.1 yrs £9,034
6 kW 6930 kWh 5197 kWh 1732 kWh £1,399 £173 £1,572 £19,207 12.2 yrs £12,240
7 kW 8085 kWh 6064 kWh 2021 kWh £1,632 £202 £1,834 £21,242 11.6 yrs £15,447
8 kW 9240 kWh 6930 kWh 2310 kWh £1,866 £231 £2,097 £23,276 11.1 yrs £18,654

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: £1,330, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 14.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2310 kWh 1779 kWh 531 kWh £479 £53 £532 £13,519 25.4 yrs £-2,880
3 kW 3465 kWh 2668 kWh 797 kWh £718 £80 £798 £15,554 19.5 yrs £405
4 kW 4620 kWh 3557 kWh 1063 kWh £958 £106 £1,064 £17,588 16.5 yrs £3,690
5 kW 5775 kWh 4447 kWh 1328 kWh £1,197 £133 £1,330 £19,623 14.8 yrs £6,975
6 kW 6930 kWh 5336 kWh 1594 kWh £1,436 £159 £1,596 £21,657 13.6 yrs £10,259
7 kW 8085 kWh 6225 kWh 1860 kWh £1,676 £186 £1,862 £23,692 12.7 yrs £13,544
8 kW 9240 kWh 7115 kWh 2125 kWh £1,915 £213 £2,128 £25,726 12.1 yrs £16,829

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 BN26

Figures below are tailored to BN26 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #607 of 2182
5.5 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~12 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #1 of 2997
9.1 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£1,338 /yr • £12,207 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #16 of 2997
13.0% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£174 fixed • ~£1,338 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.92p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
47.60p/day
Local Sunshine
1155kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1155 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: 47% • Flats: 18% • Bungalows: 32% Based on 3,537 properties

Coverage

Wealden (100%)

Areas Covered

Polegate North, Polegate South & Willingdon Watermill, South Downs, Polegate Central, Arlington, Lower Willingdon, Hailsham South, Hailsham East + 1 more

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 South East

BN27 (Wealden)
≈4.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,134 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BN26
BN22 (Eastbourne)
≈5.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,138 kWh/kWp · -1% vs BN26
BN23 (Eastbourne)
≈5.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,126 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BN26
BN24 (Wealden)
≈5.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,137 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BN26
BN20 (Eastbourne)
≈5.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,141 kWh/kWp · -1% vs BN26
BN21 (Eastbourne)
≈6.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,135 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BN26

Similar sunshine across the UK

PO19 (Chichester)
~1,138 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BN26
PO30 (Isle of Wight)
~1,133 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BN26
PO10 (Havant)
~1,133 kWh/kWp · -2% vs BN26