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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in SR8 (County Durham)

See if solar pays off for you in County Durham — 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
13.6 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,138
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£600
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£6,851
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 Northern, the current unit rate is 25.43p/kWh with a 59.86p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 927 kWh/kW — 1 above the regional median (926).

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 927 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 25.4p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
25.4p/kWh
Standing charge
59.9p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
927 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: £749, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 13.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1854 kWh 741 kWh 1112 kWh £189 £111 £300 £4,069 13.6 yrs £1,927
3 kW 2781 kWh 1112 kWh 1668 kWh £283 £167 £450 £6,104 13.6 yrs £2,890
4 kW 3707 kWh 1483 kWh 2224 kWh £377 £222 £600 £8,138 13.6 yrs £3,853
5 kW 4634 kWh 1854 kWh 2781 kWh £471 £278 £749 £10,173 13.6 yrs £4,816
6 kW 5561 kWh 2224 kWh 3337 kWh £566 £334 £899 £12,207 13.6 yrs £5,780
7 kW 6488 kWh 2595 kWh 3893 kWh £660 £389 £1,049 £14,242 13.6 yrs £6,743
8 kW 7415 kWh 2966 kWh 4449 kWh £754 £445 £1,199 £16,276 13.6 yrs £7,706

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: £892, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 13.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1854 kWh 1112 kWh 741 kWh £283 £74 £357 £6,169 17.3 yrs £971
3 kW 2781 kWh 1668 kWh 1112 kWh £424 £111 £535 £8,204 15.3 yrs £2,506
4 kW 3707 kWh 2224 kWh 1483 kWh £566 £148 £714 £10,238 14.3 yrs £4,041
5 kW 4634 kWh 2781 kWh 1854 kWh £707 £185 £892 £12,273 13.8 yrs £5,577
6 kW 5561 kWh 3337 kWh 2224 kWh £849 £222 £1,071 £14,307 13.4 yrs £7,112
7 kW 6488 kWh 3893 kWh 2595 kWh £990 £260 £1,249 £16,342 13.1 yrs £8,647
8 kW 7415 kWh 4449 kWh 2966 kWh £1,131 £297 £1,428 £18,376 12.9 yrs £10,182

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: £964, Upfront: £13,673, 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 1854 kWh 1298 kWh 556 kWh £330 £56 £386 £7,569 19.6 yrs £143
3 kW 2781 kWh 1946 kWh 834 kWh £495 £83 £578 £9,604 16.6 yrs £1,964
4 kW 3707 kWh 2595 kWh 1112 kWh £660 £111 £771 £11,638 15.1 yrs £3,785
5 kW 4634 kWh 3244 kWh 1390 kWh £825 £139 £964 £13,673 14.2 yrs £5,607
6 kW 5561 kWh 3893 kWh 1668 kWh £990 £167 £1,157 £15,707 13.6 yrs £7,428
7 kW 6488 kWh 4542 kWh 1946 kWh £1,155 £195 £1,350 £17,742 13.1 yrs £9,249
8 kW 7415 kWh 5190 kWh 2224 kWh £1,320 £222 £1,542 £19,776 12.8 yrs £11,071

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: £985, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 15.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1854 kWh 1353 kWh 500 kWh £344 £50 £394 £9,319 23.6 yrs £-1,436
3 kW 2781 kWh 2030 kWh 751 kWh £516 £75 £591 £11,354 19.2 yrs £471
4 kW 3707 kWh 2706 kWh 1001 kWh £688 £100 £788 £13,388 17.0 yrs £2,379
5 kW 4634 kWh 3383 kWh 1251 kWh £860 £125 £985 £15,423 15.7 yrs £4,286
6 kW 5561 kWh 4060 kWh 1501 kWh £1,032 £150 £1,182 £17,457 14.8 yrs £6,193
7 kW 6488 kWh 4736 kWh 1752 kWh £1,204 £175 £1,380 £19,492 14.1 yrs £8,100
8 kW 7415 kWh 5413 kWh 2002 kWh £1,376 £200 £1,577 £21,526 13.7 yrs £10,007

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: £1,000, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 17.2 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1854 kWh 1390 kWh 463 kWh £354 £46 £400 £11,069 27.7 yrs £-3,071
3 kW 2781 kWh 2085 kWh 695 kWh £530 £70 £600 £13,104 21.8 yrs £-1,107
4 kW 3707 kWh 2781 kWh 927 kWh £707 £93 £800 £15,138 18.9 yrs £857
5 kW 4634 kWh 3476 kWh 1159 kWh £884 £116 £1,000 £17,173 17.2 yrs £2,822
6 kW 5561 kWh 4171 kWh 1390 kWh £1,061 £139 £1,200 £19,207 16.0 yrs £4,786
7 kW 6488 kWh 4866 kWh 1622 kWh £1,237 £162 £1,400 £21,242 15.2 yrs £6,750
8 kW 7415 kWh 5561 kWh 1854 kWh £1,414 £185 £1,600 £23,276 14.6 yrs £8,715

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: £1,014, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 19.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1854 kWh 1427 kWh 426 kWh £363 £43 £406 £13,519 33.3 yrs £-5,407
3 kW 2781 kWh 2141 kWh 640 kWh £544 £64 £608 £15,554 25.6 yrs £-3,385
4 kW 3707 kWh 2855 kWh 853 kWh £726 £85 £811 £17,588 21.7 yrs £-1,364
5 kW 4634 kWh 3568 kWh 1066 kWh £907 £107 £1,014 £19,623 19.4 yrs £658
6 kW 5561 kWh 4282 kWh 1279 kWh £1,089 £128 £1,217 £21,657 17.8 yrs £2,679
7 kW 6488 kWh 4996 kWh 1492 kWh £1,270 £149 £1,420 £23,692 16.7 yrs £4,701
8 kW 7415 kWh 5709 kWh 1705 kWh £1,452 £171 £1,622 £25,726 15.9 yrs £6,722

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 SR8

Figures below are tailored to SR8 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1446 of 2182
4.7 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #2258 of 2997
11.9 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£685 /yr • £8,138 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2707 of 2997
31.9% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£218 fixed • ~£685 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
25.43p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
59.86p/day
Local Sunshine
927kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~927 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: 76% • Flats: 9% • Bungalows: 14% Based on 11,817 properties

Coverage

County Durham (100%)

Areas Covered

Horden & Dene House, Easington & Shotton, Peterlee, Castle Eden & Passfield

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 Northern

SR88 (County Durham)
≈0.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~927 kWh/kWp · +0% vs SR8
TS28 (County Durham)
≈4.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~959 kWh/kWp · +3% vs SR8
TS27 (County Durham)
≈5.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~930 kWh/kWp · +0% vs SR8
TS29 (County Durham)
≈7.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~944 kWh/kWp · +2% vs SR8
SR7 (County Durham)
≈8.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~912 kWh/kWp · -2% vs SR8
DH6 (County Durham)
≈8.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~929 kWh/kWp · +0% vs SR8

Similar sunshine across the UK

WF14 (Kirklees)
~927 kWh/kWp · +0% vs SR8
SA46 (Ceredigion)
~927 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SR8
LS25 (Leeds)
~927 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SR8