Finding The Best Solar Panel Installers

In Summary: Choosing A Solar Panel Installer

This is a 10-minute read. If you’re stuck for time, bookmark our guide to solar panel installation companies for later, and read this guide instead. 

When choosing a solar panel company for your installation, make sure they’re registered with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS). These installers work to a set of high standards when both designing and installing your system. 

Using an MCS installer also means you’ll be eligible for the Smart Export Guarantee (you can sell electricity back to the grid). 

Easily find MCS installers by: 

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A solar panel system is likely to cost £7,000+ for a 3-bedroom semi. Whilst you can use a DIY solar panel kit to save money, it’s not advisable for an install of this size. We’d only recommend a DIY kit if you plan to install 1-2 panels to power small outdoor appliances or lights.

Get prices on the perfect solar panel system for your home by clicking here.

What To Consider When Choosing A Solar Panel Installation Company

Any property upgrade is a substantial investment, and installing solar panels is no exception. 

Choosing the best solar panel installer you can ensures: 

• Your installation is completed to the highest of standards
• Only quality components are used
• You’re able to get long manufacturer and workmanship warranties
• The panels and any battery storage (where applicable) are spec’d correctly for your property
• The price you pay is the cheapest possible!

Below are the most important things to consider when choosing a solar panel installer.

Guide To MCS Solar Panel Installers

In short, you’ll want to choose a registered and certified MCS solar panel installer.

What is MCS?

MCS is the body that monitors the quality of low carbon installations in the UK. This includes the likes of biomass boilers, air source heat pumps and of course, solar panels. 

To be MCS certified, solar panel fitters need to ensure all installations are inline with current standards. Each installation needs to be accompanied with a certificate directly from MCS. 

Whilst using an MCS solar panel installation company isn’t a legal requirement, it’s certainly advisable. Put simply, they’re accountable for the quality of their installation meaning yours will be: 

• Installed by a professional with experience and inline with current MCS standards / guidelines
• Spec’d correctly to ensure that your system (including a battery where applicable) is the most suitable for your property

This isn't a glorified badge; MCS is recognised by the UK government. 

In the case of low-carbon heating upgrades such as air source heat pumps, if your installation isn’t completed and commissioned by a MCS installer, you’ll lose out on a £7,500 government grant!

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Where To Find MCS Installers

Now you know you need a MCS installer, where do you actually find them?

Dwellow

All of our solar panel fitters are MCS registered, meaning your installation will come complete with a MCS certificate and qualify for the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG)!

Jump over to our solar panel page here and get fixed prices on-screen for your installation. 

Got questions? Speak to our solar panel experts here. 

Search Engines

Like most things these days, search engines are a great place to find the best solar panel companies in the UK.

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We fit solar panels throughout England, Scotland and Wales. If you are looking for other options for comparison’s sake, searching phrases such as the ones we mention below will generate 100s of results: 

• Best solar panel installers near me
• Solar panel installation near me
• Solar panel fitters in London (or wherever you are based)
• Solar panel companies near me
• You get the idea…

MCS Register

MCS has a register of active solar panel companies that offer installation services. Not only is this useful to find installers near you, it’s also useful to double check if a tradesperson (or company) is currently MCS certified. 

You can find the MCS register here. 

Solar Panel Company Reviews

Next, you’ll want to check out company reviews for the installers you’ve shortlisted. Not all companies offer a great price or service, so it’s important to have a dig around!

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Genuine customer reviews tend to give buyers an insight into how a company operates and highlight things such as: 

• Installation cost
• Customer service
• After-sales care

Checking the likes of Google Reviews and Trustpilot is definitely worth 5-minutes of your time before committing to a solar panel company and spending thousands.

Installer Warranty

One of the most important things to consider before employing a solar panel company to fit your system, is their warranty. 

You’ll be investing thousands of pounds into your installation, so you need to make sure all aspects of it are covered!

Warranty will consist of two parts:

• Warranty provided by the installer, which covers their work
• The warranty provided by manufacturer’s of components such as: panels, the inverter, smart controls and solar battery storage

An MCS certified installer will typically provide a 12-month workmanship warranty as a minimum. This covers any work such as installing panel mounts and wiring.

Manufacturer’s warranty will vary based on the component and brand. For example, a typical warranty for a solar battery will be 8-10 years, whereas for panels, it’s a little higher at 10-12 years. 

Having a longer warranty on both workmanship and any components may add a small amount to the initial installation cost. However, in the long run it’s going to be a worthwhile expense, and ensure you’re not accountable for any huge repair or replacement costs during this warranty period. 

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Our MCS installations come with both workmanship and component warranties. 

Check prices and the exact length of the warranty on offer by using our clickable solar panel installation tool here.

Is a Local or National Solar Panel Fitter Cheaper?

There are 100s of solar panel installation companies in the UK. The question is, is a small local installer cheaper than a company with UK wide coverage? 

Simple economies of scale means that national installers are typically cheaper. This isn’t always the case, so it’s important to compare like-for-like quotes.

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At Dwellow, we’re confident our solar panel installation prices are competitive. And, we don’t cut corners by using sub-par components to drill down these prices!

Check our prices against any national or local installer by using our quick, easy and clickable form for solar panels here. 

Locations We Install Solar Panels

We’re not just competitively priced, we also operate throughout the UK. Some of the areas we operate in include:

• London
• Manchester
• Birmingham
• Leeds
• Bradford
• Glasgow
• Southampton
• Portsmouth
• Liverpool
• Newcastle upon Tyne
• Nottingham
• Sheffield 

You can check if your postcode is covered by using our clickable tool here. 

Can I Fit Solar Panels Myself?

Like anything that costs thousands of pounds, it’s worth seeing if you can save money by fitting solar panels on a DIY basis.

Legally, you can complete a DIY solar panel install, removing the need for an installer. 

A DIY solar panel kit is likely to cost you somewhere in the region of £4,500. That said, you'll need to cross reference the quality of the components in comparison to what a MCS certified installer will use. 

Typically, they'll be slightly lower quality, lower efficiency and come with a lower warranty than what MCS solar panel installers would fit. 

Other things worth noting are: 

• This isn't a small DIY project and not for the faint hearted
• You may lose efficiency (and therefore, money) by installing an incorrectly spec'd solar panel system
• To qualify for the Smart Export Guarantee (and sell excess electricity back to the grid), your install needs to be completed by a MCS professional installer!

Our advice is this:

• If you’re looking to install a small system to power small electrical appliances (such as in an external workshop), a DIY install will be suitable
• If your plan is to have a self-sufficient home and you need a large installation to cover your electricity demand, we’d suggest using a professional installer

Not sure which option is best suited to you? 

Speak to our experts here, or jump over to our clickable solar panel tool here to get fixed prices on-screen. 

We’ve also created a more detailed guide to DIY solar panels here. 

What Do Solar Panel Installers Charge?

Chosen your installer, but not sure what you should expect to pay? Here’s a quick guide to solar panel costs.

A typical 3-bedroomed semi-detached house is going to require a 3.5kW solar panel system. The same 3-bed is likely to use somewhere in the region of 2,700kWh of electricity per year, which a 3.5kW can handle.

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Average costs sit at £7,000, which include both labour and material costs. However, this price is likely to spike to approximately £12,000 when coupling your system with a solar battery. 

You can grab installation quotes using our clickable solar panel tool here. Or for further reading, jump over to our guide to solar panel costs here. 

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