If you’ve been thinking about solar panels for your Bristol home but aren’t quite sure where to start – or whether they’ll actually work on your property – Christopher’s experience might sound familiar.
He’d wanted solar for years. The technology had always appealed, but questions kept holding him back: would his roof face the right direction? Where would the battery go? How long would it actually take to pay for itself? And crucially, would the installation damage his relatively new tiled roof?
When the pricing finally made sense, he decided to take the plunge.
The property
Christopher lives in a 1955 detached house in Bristol – the kind of solid, well-built mid-century home that’s common across South Bristol and North Somerset. He’s been there since 2000, so he knows the property well and wanted a solution that would work with it, not just be bolted on.
His concerns going in were practical ones: roof suitability, the positioning of the battery system, risk to the tiles, and making sure the payback period stacked up. He got five quotes before making his decision.
Why he chose Sustain
Christopher came to Sustain through a personal recommendation – specifically from an aeronautical engineer, which tells you something about the level of scrutiny he applied to the process.
What stood out at the survey stage wasn’t just the price. It was the approach. The Sustain surveyor visited the property, listened carefully to what Christopher wanted, and took the time to answer every question properly. He was, in Christopher’s words, “by far the best at designing the PV system I wanted.”
That matters, because solar isn’t one-size-fits-all. The right system for a 1955 detached house in Bristol is not the same as the right system for a 1990s new-build or a Victorian terrace. Getting that design stage right is what determines whether you’re happy with the system five years later.
The installation
Sustain created a specific design for Christopher’s property, which included an AIKO 8.190kw system across 18 panels – 6 on the west of Christopher’s roof and 12 panels on the south. The system was complemented by a 6kW Solis Hybrid inverter and 2 Duracell 5kw batteries. Compliant with MCS, Sustain’s design calculated Christopher’s new system could generate an annual output of over 7,000kWh per year, with an estimated saving of over £28,000 a year on his energy bills. The design and calculation was given to Christopher before he proceeded with the install, and followed Sustain’s ethos that not all homes are the same, and that their customers should only buy equipment they truly need, not just what they have space for.
The installation team arrived on time, were tidy throughout, and completed everything as promised. The electrician took the time to walk Christopher through the electrical setup and show him how to use the Solis monitoring app so he could keep an eye on the system’s performance himself.
There was one post-installation issue worth mentioning – because it’s actually a good example of how Sustain handles things. The inverter’s fan was creating a low-level noise that could be heard in the lounge. It turned out to be the resonance of the walls rather than a fault with the fan itself (which was tested and confirmed to be working within normal parameters). Rather than leaving it at that, Daniel arranged for the electrician to return and mount the inverter on rubber bushes, eliminating the conducted noise entirely.
The results
Since installation, the system has performed exactly as expected.
In Christopher’s words: “The results have been significant.”
Winter energy bills are down by a third. During the summer months, the system exports surplus electricity back to the grid. From spring through to autumn, there are regularly import-free days – meaning the household runs entirely on solar-generated power.
With his two-year fixed-price tariff coming to an end, Christopher is also looking at switching to a better export tariff and adding overnight battery charging at a cheaper rate – which will push the annual savings even further.
Would he recommend Sustain?
Without hesitation. His reasoning is straightforward: they designed the system he actually wanted, answered every question properly, installed it cleanly, and sorted the one post-installation issue quickly and without fuss.
Thinking about solar for your Bristol home?
If you own a detached or semi-detached property in Bristol and you’re weighing up whether solar is worth it, the best starting point is a proper survey. Every roof is different – orientation, pitch, shading, and your energy usage all affect what size system makes sense and what your payback period will look like.
Sustain Heating & Renewables carry out free home surveys across Bristol and the surrounding area.
Get in touch to book yours.