Solar Panel Installation in Wales
MCS-certified solar PV installation for homes and businesses, anywhere in Wales. Tile, slate, flat or metal roofs — we handle every property type, from terraced houses in the Valleys to barn conversions on the Llŷn Peninsula.
Our engineers design every system from first principles. No template proposals, no upselling, no surprises on the day. Just well-sized, properly fitted solar that pays you back.
What a solar panel installation actually involves
A solar panel installation is more than fastening panels to a roof. It is a complete electrical engineering project that ties your roof to your consumer unit, your meter and the national grid. Getting any one of those connections wrong wastes generation, voids warranties or, in the worst cases, creates a fire risk. Welsh Solar handles the whole chain in-house.
Every installation begins with a free site survey. We measure your roof using laser equipment, check the pitch and orientation, assess shading with a solar pathfinder, and inspect the loft for rafter condition and ventilation. We test your existing consumer unit and confirm whether a DNO (District Network Operator) application is required for systems above 3.68 kWp single-phase.
Within five working days, you receive a written design including the panel layout, predicted annual generation in kWh, an inverter specification, mounting hardware, cable runs and a fully itemised price. Nothing is added later. If you accept, we book the install date, order the components and apply for the DNO permission if needed.
Welsh roofs, Welsh weather, Welsh standards
Welsh roofs come in every shape. Pembrokeshire slate, Caernarfon tiles, Cardiff Victorian terraces, Powys barn conversions, modern Newport new-builds — we have installed on all of them. The mounting system, the flashing approach and even the panel choice differ between property types.
On slate roofs, we use slate hooks that slide under the existing slate without breaking the waterproofing, then weatherproof the penetration with industry-standard flashings. On modern concrete tile, we use roof anchors fixed to the rafters. On flat roofs, we use ballast trays that need no roof penetrations at all.
Welsh weather is on the customer's side. Solar panels generate from daylight, not just direct sun, and they actually produce more on a cool, bright Welsh day than in scorching heat. Cell efficiency drops by around 0.4% for every degree above 25°C, so the relatively mild Welsh climate is, counter-intuitively, an excellent environment for PV.
What you get with a Welsh Solar installation
We only fit Tier 1 panels — the manufacturers ranked highest by Bloomberg New Energy Finance for financial bankability and long-term warranty support. Cheap panels from unknown brands often disappear within five years, leaving customers with broken systems and no warranty cover. We will not put a panel on your roof that we would not put on our own.
- Tier 1 panels with 25–30 year performance warranties
- Hybrid or string inverter, AC- or DC-coupled, depending on system design
- 15-year workmanship warranty from Welsh Solar
- Full DNO application and SEG registration on your behalf
- Monitoring app showing real-time and historical generation
- MCS certificate issued within 10 working days
- Smart meter integration where compatible
- Optional battery and EV charger upgrade paths
How long does an installation take?
Most domestic installations are completed in one or two working days. The first day is typically scaffolding, mounting rails, panels and cabling. The second day is inverter installation, consumer unit work, commissioning and customer handover. We always send a fully qualified team — not subcontractors — and we leave your home as clean as we found it.
Commercial installs scale with size. A 30kWp office system takes around five to seven days. A 250kWp warehouse system can take three to four weeks, depending on access and electrical complexity. We plan around your trading hours wherever possible.
Once installation is complete, we test every connection, commission the inverter, register your system with the MCS database and apply for your Smart Export Guarantee tariff. You receive a handover pack including manuals, certificates, the monitoring login and a single point of contact at Welsh Solar for any future query.
Solar across the Welsh climate
Some prospective customers in places like Snowdonia or the Brecon Beacons worry about whether solar even works in Wales. The numbers say otherwise. The Met Office records an average 1,540 hours of bright sunshine in South Wales every year and over 1,400 hours in the north. Crucially, photovoltaic cells respond to daylight rather than direct sun – meaning Welsh drizzle, overcast and cool conditions actually generate well.
Cooler operating temperatures also help. Panel efficiency drops about 0.35% per degree above 25°C, so a Welsh-spec system in Aberystwyth often outperforms an identical installation in southern Spain on a like-for-like daily basis. Our system designers use site-specific irradiance data from the European PVGIS database to give you an accurate, location-tuned yield estimate before you sign anything.
Working with Welsh listed and conservation properties
Wales has more than 30,000 listed buildings and dozens of conservation areas. Solar on these properties is possible but typically requires sensitive design, in-roof systems and full liaison with your local Cadw officer. Welsh Solar has completed installations on Grade-II listed farmhouses in the Vale of Glamorgan, Edwardian terraces in Cardiff conservation areas and several heritage projects in Pembrokeshire National Park.
If you live in a sensitive setting, our in-house planning team will manage the entire approval process for you, including planning portal submissions, drawings and any pre-application discussions with the local authority. Most heritage installs use all-black panels and integrated mounting kits that sit flush within the original roof line.
Frequently asked questions
How much do solar panels cost to install in Wales?
A standard 4kWp domestic system fitted by Welsh Solar costs between £6,500 and £9,000 depending on roof complexity and panel choice. We provide a fully itemised written quote after a free site survey, with no hidden extras.
Do I need planning permission?
For most domestic roof-mounted installations, solar panels are permitted development and need no planning consent. Listed buildings, conservation areas and some flat-roof installations are exceptions. We check this for you during the survey.
Will an installation damage my roof?
No. Our mounting systems are designed to integrate with your existing waterproofing without compromising it. We carry £5m public liability insurance and provide a 15-year workmanship warranty covering all roof works.
What is the Smart Export Guarantee?
The Smart Export Guarantee, or SEG, is the government scheme that pays you for electricity you export to the grid. Rates vary by supplier — Octopus Outgoing is currently among the most competitive. We register your system with your chosen supplier as part of the installation.