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

Solar Panels in KA13 (North Ayrshire)

See if solar pays off for you in North Ayrshire — 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
14.2 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£12,207
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£862
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£9,355
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

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 880 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 25.8p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
25.8p/kWh
Standing charge
56.5p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
880 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: £719, Upfront: £10,173, 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 1760 kWh 704 kWh 1056 kWh £182 £106 £287 £4,069 14.2 yrs £1,681
3 kW 2640 kWh 1056 kWh 1584 kWh £273 £158 £431 £6,104 14.2 yrs £2,521
4 kW 3520 kWh 1408 kWh 2112 kWh £364 £211 £575 £8,138 14.2 yrs £3,362
5 kW 4400 kWh 1760 kWh 2640 kWh £455 £264 £719 £10,173 14.2 yrs £4,202
6 kW 5280 kWh 2112 kWh 3168 kWh £546 £317 £862 £12,207 14.2 yrs £5,042
7 kW 6160 kWh 2464 kWh 3696 kWh £637 £370 £1,006 £14,242 14.2 yrs £5,883
8 kW 7039 kWh 2816 kWh 4224 kWh £728 £422 £1,150 £16,276 14.2 yrs £6,723

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: £858, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 14.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1760 kWh 1056 kWh 704 kWh £273 £70 £343 £6,169 18.0 yrs £696
3 kW 2640 kWh 1584 kWh 1056 kWh £409 £106 £515 £8,204 15.9 yrs £2,094
4 kW 3520 kWh 2112 kWh 1408 kWh £546 £141 £686 £10,238 14.9 yrs £3,492
5 kW 4400 kWh 2640 kWh 1760 kWh £682 £176 £858 £12,273 14.3 yrs £4,890
6 kW 5280 kWh 3168 kWh 2112 kWh £819 £211 £1,030 £14,307 13.9 yrs £6,288
7 kW 6160 kWh 3696 kWh 2464 kWh £955 £246 £1,201 £16,342 13.6 yrs £7,685
8 kW 7039 kWh 4224 kWh 2816 kWh £1,091 £282 £1,373 £18,376 13.4 yrs £9,083

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: £928, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 14.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1760 kWh 1232 kWh 528 kWh £318 £53 £371 £7,569 20.4 yrs £-147
3 kW 2640 kWh 1848 kWh 792 kWh £477 £79 £557 £9,604 17.3 yrs £1,530
4 kW 3520 kWh 2464 kWh 1056 kWh £637 £106 £742 £11,638 15.7 yrs £3,207
5 kW 4400 kWh 3080 kWh 1320 kWh £796 £132 £928 £13,673 14.7 yrs £4,883
6 kW 5280 kWh 3696 kWh 1584 kWh £955 £158 £1,113 £15,707 14.1 yrs £6,560
7 kW 6160 kWh 4312 kWh 1848 kWh £1,114 £185 £1,299 £17,742 13.7 yrs £8,237
8 kW 7039 kWh 4928 kWh 2112 kWh £1,273 £211 £1,484 £19,776 13.3 yrs £9,913

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: £949, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 16.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1760 kWh 1285 kWh 475 kWh £332 £48 £379 £9,319 24.6 yrs £-1,729
3 kW 2640 kWh 1927 kWh 713 kWh £498 £71 £569 £11,354 19.9 yrs £31
4 kW 3520 kWh 2569 kWh 950 kWh £664 £95 £759 £13,388 17.6 yrs £1,791
5 kW 4400 kWh 3212 kWh 1188 kWh £830 £119 £949 £15,423 16.3 yrs £3,552
6 kW 5280 kWh 3854 kWh 1425 kWh £996 £143 £1,138 £17,457 15.3 yrs £5,312
7 kW 6160 kWh 4496 kWh 1663 kWh £1,162 £166 £1,328 £19,492 14.7 yrs £7,072
8 kW 7039 kWh 5139 kWh 1901 kWh £1,328 £190 £1,518 £21,526 14.2 yrs £8,832

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: £963, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 17.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1760 kWh 1320 kWh 440 kWh £341 £44 £385 £11,069 28.7 yrs £-3,368
3 kW 2640 kWh 1980 kWh 660 kWh £512 £66 £578 £13,104 22.7 yrs £-1,552
4 kW 3520 kWh 2640 kWh 880 kWh £682 £88 £770 £15,138 19.7 yrs £264
5 kW 4400 kWh 3300 kWh 1100 kWh £853 £110 £963 £17,173 17.8 yrs £2,080
6 kW 5280 kWh 3960 kWh 1320 kWh £1,023 £132 £1,155 £19,207 16.6 yrs £3,896
7 kW 6160 kWh 4620 kWh 1540 kWh £1,194 £154 £1,348 £21,242 15.8 yrs £5,712
8 kW 7039 kWh 5280 kWh 1760 kWh £1,364 £176 £1,540 £23,276 15.1 yrs £7,529

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: £977, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 20.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1760 kWh 1355 kWh 405 kWh £350 £40 £391 £13,519 34.6 yrs £-5,706
3 kW 2640 kWh 2033 kWh 607 kWh £525 £61 £586 £15,554 26.5 yrs £-3,835
4 kW 3520 kWh 2710 kWh 810 kWh £700 £81 £781 £17,588 22.5 yrs £-1,963
5 kW 4400 kWh 3388 kWh 1012 kWh £875 £101 £977 £19,623 20.1 yrs £-91
6 kW 5280 kWh 4065 kWh 1214 kWh £1,050 £121 £1,172 £21,657 18.5 yrs £1,781
7 kW 6160 kWh 4743 kWh 1417 kWh £1,226 £142 £1,367 £23,692 17.3 yrs £3,653
8 kW 7039 kWh 5420 kWh 1619 kWh £1,401 £162 £1,563 £25,726 16.5 yrs £5,525

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
25.84p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
56.55p/day
Local Sunshine
880kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~880 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

No EPC data available for this outcode

Coverage

North Ayrshire (100%)

Areas Covered

Kilwinning, Annick, Garnock Valley, Irvine West

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.