Matching solar to daytime use
Businesses that use most of their electricity in the day, such as workshops, offices, cold stores and farms with pumps or machinery, often use a large share of what their panels generate. Before designing a system, installers will want to see your electricity bills or half-hourly data, so they can size it to your actual use. Battery storage can help where use peaks early or late. VAT rules for business installations differ from those for homes, so speak to your accountant about how the cost is treated in your accounts.
Planning for larger roofs and ground arrays
Non-domestic buildings have their own permitted development rights for solar, with different limits from houses, and some sites have conditions that restrict them. Ground-mounted arrays and large systems are more likely to need planning permission, particularly in the Kent Downs or High Weald National Landscapes, near listed buildings or on Green Belt land. Converted oast houses and listed farm buildings need particular care. Check with your council early, and ask installers whether they have handled planning applications for similar sites in your area.
Grid connections, roofs and insurance
Larger systems normally need approval from UK Power Networks before they connect, and on some rural parts of the network that can take time or come with conditions such as an export limit. Older farm and industrial roofs may be fibre cement sheet, which can contain asbestos, so a survey of the roof's condition and fixings comes first. Tell your insurer about the installation, and if you lease the building, get the landlord's written consent before you sign anything. Ask about maintenance access and isolation for firefighters as well.
Jobs we can find a solar and battery installer for
- Roof-mounted solar for business premises
- Barns, workshops and agricultural buildings
- Ground-mounted arrays
- Battery storage for commercial use
- Grid applications to UK Power Networks
- Usage analysis from bills or meter data
Get a quote for commercial, farm and outbuilding solar
Available across Kent
Other services
Solar panel installation · Solar panels with battery storage · Adding a battery to existing solar panels · EV charger installation · Solar repairs, inverter replacement and maintenance