Solar explained to clever people by people who are not trying to be clever

Solar Panels in HX5 (Calderdale)

See if solar pays off for you in Calderdale — 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
14.0 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,138
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£582
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£6,402
After paying itself off, you're this much ahead

Ready to Get Started?

Get your free quote from Blue Ape Renewables. They'll connect you with MCS-certified installers in your area and handle all the paperwork.

Get Solar Quote →
4.8★ Trustpilot • Octopus Energy trusted partner • MCS certified • No obligation
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

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 4.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 901 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 25.3p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
25.3p/kWh
Standing charge
58.6p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
901 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: £727, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 14.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1803 kWh 721 kWh 1082 kWh £183 £108 £291 £4,069 14.0 yrs £1,747
3 kW 2704 kWh 1082 kWh 1622 kWh £274 £162 £436 £6,104 14.0 yrs £2,621
4 kW 3605 kWh 1442 kWh 2163 kWh £365 £216 £582 £8,138 14.0 yrs £3,494
5 kW 4507 kWh 1803 kWh 2704 kWh £457 £270 £727 £10,173 14.0 yrs £4,368
6 kW 5408 kWh 2163 kWh 3245 kWh £548 £324 £872 £12,207 14.0 yrs £5,241
7 kW 6309 kWh 2524 kWh 3786 kWh £639 £379 £1,018 £14,242 14.0 yrs £6,115
8 kW 7211 kWh 2884 kWh 4326 kWh £731 £433 £1,163 £16,276 14.0 yrs £6,988

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: £865, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 14.2 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1803 kWh 1082 kWh 721 kWh £274 £72 £346 £6,169 17.8 yrs £752
3 kW 2704 kWh 1622 kWh 1082 kWh £411 £108 £519 £8,204 15.8 yrs £2,179
4 kW 3605 kWh 2163 kWh 1442 kWh £548 £144 £692 £10,238 14.8 yrs £3,605
5 kW 4507 kWh 2704 kWh 1803 kWh £685 £180 £865 £12,273 14.2 yrs £5,031
6 kW 5408 kWh 3245 kWh 2163 kWh £822 £216 £1,038 £14,307 13.8 yrs £6,457
7 kW 6309 kWh 3786 kWh 2524 kWh £959 £252 £1,211 £16,342 13.5 yrs £7,884
8 kW 7211 kWh 4326 kWh 2884 kWh £1,096 £288 £1,384 £18,376 13.3 yrs £9,310

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: £934, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 14.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1803 kWh 1262 kWh 541 kWh £320 £54 £374 £7,569 20.3 yrs £-95
3 kW 2704 kWh 1893 kWh 811 kWh £479 £81 £561 £9,604 17.1 yrs £1,608
4 kW 3605 kWh 2524 kWh 1082 kWh £639 £108 £747 £11,638 15.6 yrs £3,310
5 kW 4507 kWh 3155 kWh 1352 kWh £799 £135 £934 £13,673 14.6 yrs £5,013
6 kW 5408 kWh 3786 kWh 1622 kWh £959 £162 £1,121 £15,707 14.0 yrs £6,716
7 kW 6309 kWh 4417 kWh 1893 kWh £1,119 £189 £1,308 £17,742 13.6 yrs £8,418
8 kW 7211 kWh 5047 kWh 2163 kWh £1,279 £216 £1,495 £19,776 13.2 yrs £10,121

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: £955, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 16.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1803 kWh 1316 kWh 487 kWh £333 £49 £382 £9,319 24.4 yrs £-1,679
3 kW 2704 kWh 1974 kWh 730 kWh £500 £73 £573 £11,354 19.8 yrs £106
4 kW 3605 kWh 2632 kWh 973 kWh £667 £97 £764 £13,388 17.5 yrs £1,892
5 kW 4507 kWh 3290 kWh 1217 kWh £833 £122 £955 £15,423 16.1 yrs £3,677
6 kW 5408 kWh 3948 kWh 1460 kWh £1,000 £146 £1,146 £17,457 15.2 yrs £5,463
7 kW 6309 kWh 4606 kWh 1704 kWh £1,167 £170 £1,337 £19,492 14.6 yrs £7,248
8 kW 7211 kWh 5264 kWh 1947 kWh £1,333 £195 £1,528 £21,526 14.1 yrs £9,034

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: £969, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 17.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1803 kWh 1352 kWh 451 kWh £342 £45 £388 £11,069 28.6 yrs £-3,318
3 kW 2704 kWh 2028 kWh 676 kWh £514 £68 £581 £13,104 22.5 yrs £-1,478
4 kW 3605 kWh 2704 kWh 901 kWh £685 £90 £775 £15,138 19.5 yrs £363
5 kW 4507 kWh 3380 kWh 1127 kWh £856 £113 £969 £17,173 17.7 yrs £2,204
6 kW 5408 kWh 4056 kWh 1352 kWh £1,027 £135 £1,163 £19,207 16.5 yrs £4,045
7 kW 6309 kWh 4732 kWh 1577 kWh £1,199 £158 £1,356 £21,242 15.7 yrs £5,885
8 kW 7211 kWh 5408 kWh 1803 kWh £1,370 £180 £1,550 £23,276 15.0 yrs £7,726

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: £983, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 20.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1803 kWh 1388 kWh 415 kWh £352 £41 £393 £13,519 34.4 yrs £-5,658
3 kW 2704 kWh 2082 kWh 622 kWh £527 £62 £590 £15,554 26.4 yrs £-3,762
4 kW 3605 kWh 2776 kWh 829 kWh £703 £83 £786 £17,588 22.4 yrs £-1,866
5 kW 4507 kWh 3470 kWh 1037 kWh £879 £104 £983 £19,623 20.0 yrs £30
6 kW 5408 kWh 4164 kWh 1244 kWh £1,055 £124 £1,179 £21,657 18.4 yrs £1,926
7 kW 6309 kWh 4858 kWh 1451 kWh £1,231 £145 £1,376 £23,692 17.2 yrs £3,822
8 kW 7211 kWh 5552 kWh 1658 kWh £1,406 £166 £1,572 £25,726 16.4 yrs £5,718

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.

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
25.33p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
58.65p/day
Local Sunshine
901kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~901 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
4.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 61% • Flats: 29% • Bungalows: 6% Based on 3,260 properties

Coverage

Calderdale (100%)

Areas Covered

Elland, Town, Brighouse

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.