Can I have solar on my balcony?
Three questions about your balcony, your building and your home. You'll get a straight answer and your next steps. Nothing you pick is saved or sent.
What to do next
Your result, explained
Looks hopeful
Nothing in the rules rules you out. If you rent or lease, the next step is a written yes.
Check first
You weren't sure about the balcony or the building. Find out, then run the check again.
Not for plug-in solar
A timber balcony, excluded cladding or wall remediation. No kit can go there.
What to do next
If your result looks hopeful, here's the order to do things in.
- 1Get permission in writingFrom your landlord, or the freeholder or managing agent. Our letters do the wording.
- 2Measure your railingTwo full-size panels need about 3.6m. The fit check works it out.
- 3Sort the socketA weatherproof outdoor socket within reach of the kit's cable, and modern RCD protection in your fuse box.
- 4Tell your insurerLet your home or contents insurer know before the kit goes up.
- 5Register before first useIt's free at myplugin.solar, and the rules say you must.
Join the kit list
Balcony kits are coming soon. Leave your email and we'll tell you when you can order.
Why doesn't the check just say yes?
Because the final yes isn't ours to give. The rules set out where plug-in solar can't go, and your landlord or freeholder decides about permission. The check tells you whether anything in the rules rules you out.
What are ACM, MCM and HPL?
Types of panel used on the outside of some buildings: aluminium composite material (ACM), metal composite material (MCM) and high-pressure laminate (HPL). Along with timber cladding, they're the types named in the plug-in solar exclusions.
How do I find out about my building's cladding?
Ask your managing agent or freeholder. If the external walls have been checked, they'll know the result. If you've sold or remortgaged a flat in the building, you may have seen an EWS1 form, which records that check.
My balcony has glass panels. Is that a problem?
Not under the rules. It's a fixing question: you'll need brackets the kit's maker approves for glass. We'll say clearly which kits have them.