👋🏼 Hi, Thanks for getting in touch.
We’ll be in touch shortly. Here’s everything you need to know about solar panels.
While our team prepares your free survey, explore what M&E Contrax Renewables can do for your home, business, or farm and what you could save.
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MCS Accredited
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NICEIC Approved
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RECC Registered
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Based in Devon
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In-house Team
What Solar Delivers
Real numbers. Real savings.
Based on actual M&E Contrax installations across Devon and the South West.
£600 – £900
Typical annual savings for a Devon home on a 4kWp system
22%
Annual return on investment to Torquay Golf Club commercial installation
7 – 9
Years typical payback for Devon homes to then 15+ years of free generation
13%
Above UK average irradiance in Devon to more sunshine means more savings
All figures based on July 2026 electricity rates and Devon irradiance data. Individual results vary based on property, consumption, and system size.
Who we work with
Solar for homes, businesses and farms.
Tell us about your property and we’ll design a system around your specific needs and consumption profile.
Cut your bills. Own your energy.
A solar panel system designed for your home reduces your dependence on the grid from day one. We survey your roof, review your electricity bills, and design a system around your actual consumption to not a generic template.
Free site survey to roof orientation, shading, and consumption all assessed
0% VAT on all domestic solar and battery storage until March 2027
EV charger integration to Zappi, Ohme, Andersen, Hypervolt
Battery storage option to capture surplus generation
24/7 aftercare from our Newton Abbot team
Book your domestic survey today!
Reduce operating costs. Maximise ROI.
Commercial solar is one of the strongest returns on capital investment available to UK businesses right now. The Annual Investment Allowance lets you deduct the full cost from taxable profits in year one to at 25% corporation tax, that reduces the net cost by a quarter immediately.
System designed from your actual site consumption data
Annual Investment Allowance to full cost deductible in year one
DNO notification and application managed by our team
Commercial installations from 10kWp to 100kWp+
Torquay Golf Club: 22% annual ROI from our installation
In-house NICEIC-approved electrical team to no subcontractors
Book your commercial survey today!
Agricultural solar to some of the best returns available.
Farm buildings with large south-facing roof areas and high daytime electricity consumption from machinery, cold stores, and livestock equipment are among the strongest solar candidates in the UK. Agricultural permitted development means most barn installations need no planning application.
Agricultural permitted development to no planning application in most cases
Large roof systems from 30kWp to 250kWp+
Payback periods often under 7 years for large agricultural systems
Annual Investment Allowance available for farm businesses
Combine with heat pump for oil-heated farmhouses to £9,000 BUS grant available
Rural Devon expertise to familiar with DNO constraints in EX and TQ postcodes
Book your farm survey today!The Process
From enquiry to generating to here’s how it works
We make it straightforward. One team handles everything from survey to switch-on.
Free survey call
We call you to gather the key details about your property and energy use. This takes around 15 minutes and costs nothing.
Site survey
One of our surveyors visits your property. We assess roof orientation, pitch, shading, and existing electrical setup. Around 1 hour.
Bespoke design and quote
We produce a system design and fixed quote tailored to your property and consumption data to not a generic estimate.
Installation day
Our own in-house team installs everything to panels, inverter, battery if included, and all electrical connections. Most homes: one day.
Commissioned and certified
We commission the system, issue your MCS certificate, and register for the Smart Export Guarantee on your behalf.
Start saving
Your system starts generating from day one. We provide 24/7 aftercare from our Newton Abbot base.
All figures based on July 2026 electricity rates and Devon irradiance data. Individual results vary based on property, consumption, and system size.
Why M&E Contrax
We’re not a national company with no local presence – We’re a local company that care
We are based in Newton Abbot. Our installation team works across Devon and the South West every week. That matters for aftercare.
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Based in Newton Abbot
18 years trading in Devon as part of the Western Industrial Group. Not a national installer deploying a remote crew.
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MCS Accredited
Required for the Smart Export Guarantee and all government grant schemes. Verify us at mcscertified.com before you book.
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NICEIC Approved Electricians
All electrical installation work is carried out by our own NICEIC-approved engineers. Independently audited, not self-declared.
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In-house installation team
The company that surveys your property is the same company that installs and maintains it. No subcontracted crews.
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24/7 aftercare
Because we are local, we can respond faster than a national installer. Your aftercare contact is a real person in Devon.
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Full system capability
Solar panels, battery storage, EV chargers, air conditioning, heat pumps, and EICR to one company, no need to coordinate multiple contractors.
Battery Storage
Get more from every panel
Without a battery, most homes use around 30–40% of what their solar panels generate. With a well-sized battery, that rises to 70–80% to and the rest earns income through the Smart Export Guarantee.
35%
Self-consumption without battery
80%
Self-consumption with battery
0%
VAT on domestic solar and storage
10kWh
Typical battery size for a Devon home
Adding a battery at the same time as your solar panels is more cost-efficient than retrofitting later to the inverter, consumer unit, and cable routes are shared.
Brands with Install
TW3
Tesla Powerwall 3
13.5kWh, backup power capability, smart scheduling
FOX
Fox Energy Storage
Flexible capacity from 5kWh, competitively priced
SOL
SolarEdge Home Battery
Integrated with optimiser systems, strong monitoring
PYL
Pylontech
Modular and scalable, LFP chemistry
Grants & Incentives
Ways to reduce the cost of going solar
Several schemes are currently available. We advise on eligibility at the survey stage.
0%
VAT on Solar and Battery Storage
All domestic solar panel and battery storage installations currently attract 0% VAT. This applies automatically and is confirmed until at least March 2027.
Available now to all properties
£7,500
Boiler Upgrade Scheme to Heat Pump Grant
£7,500 towards an air source or ground source heat pump for most eligible homes. Rises to £9,000 for off-gas grid properties (oil or LPG) until March 2027.
Owner-occupiers, no income test
£2,500
Air-to-Air Heat Pump Grant
Coming to the BUS from 2027. Air-to-air systems (modern air conditioning units that also heat in winter) now qualify for a £2,500 government grant in residential properties.
Launching 2027 | residential properties
FREE
Warm Homes Local Grant to Devon
Fully funded solar and battery installations for eligible lower-income Devon households. Delivered through Devon County Council. Currently open for Torbay residents.
Income-eligible households
SEG
Smart Export Guarantee
Your energy supplier pays you for every unit of surplus electricity you export to the grid. We register your system for the SEG at handover to you do not need to do anything.
All MCS-certified installations
AIA
Annual Investment Allowance
Businesses can deduct the full cost of a commercial solar installation from taxable profits in the year of purchase. At 25% corporation tax, this reduces net cost by a quarter immediately.
Business and farm installations
Our Work
Installations across Devon and the South West
Real projects with verified figures. Every installation is MCS-certified.
Common Questions
Questions we hear most often
Answered honestly. If yours is not here call us on 01364 654271.
For a typical 3–4 bedroom Devon home with a south-facing or south-west facing roof, a 4kWp solar system generates around 3,500 to 4,200 kWh per year. At current electricity prices (26.11p per kWh on a standard variable tariff as of July 2026), annual savings from self-consumption plus Smart Export Guarantee income typically range from £600 to £900 per year. Adding battery storage improves self-consumption and can push annual savings higher. Devon’s irradiance advantage of around 13% above the UK national average means systems here consistently outperform equivalent installations further north.
Most standard rooftop installations fall under permitted development and do not require planning permission. The exceptions are listed buildings (which require listed building consent) and properties in conservation areas where the installation would be visible from a highway. Devon has significant conservation area coverage in Exeter, Torbay, Dartmouth, and elsewhere. We check the planning position for every property at the survey stage and will tell you clearly before you commit to anything.
For a standard domestic installation of 10 to 14 panels with a string inverter, typically one full day. An installation with battery storage takes one to two days depending on the battery type and installation complexity. Larger commercial systems are programmed over multiple days. We give you a specific programme at the quote stage.
A roof survey is the only reliable way to assess suitability. Generally, south, south-east, or south-west facing roofs at 20 to 40 degrees pitch generate best. East and west-facing roofs still work well to you lose perhaps 15 to 20% of annual generation compared with a perfect south-facing roof, but the system is still financially viable. North-facing roofs are rarely suitable. Shading from trees, chimneys, or neighbouring buildings reduces output significantly and must be assessed at survey. We survey every property before making any recommendation.
Surplus electricity that your home or business does not consume immediately either charges your battery (if you have one) or is exported to the grid. For exported electricity, the Smart Export Guarantee pays you a rate from your energy supplier for every unit exported. We register your system for the SEG on your behalf at handover to you do not need to arrange this separately.
Yes. Solar panels generate from daylight, not from heat. They produce less in winter than in summer because the days are shorter and the sun is lower in the sky to but generation continues year-round. Devon’s mild maritime climate means very cold temperatures, which reduce panel efficiency, are rare. A typical well-sized Devon system generates around 1,200 to 1,500 kWh in summer months and 200 to 400 kWh in the winter months, with the annual total depending on roof orientation and shading.
Modern solar panels carry a 25-year product warranty and a 25 to 30-year performance guarantee from manufacturers. Inverters typically carry 10 to 12 year warranties. We specify panels and inverters from established manufacturers rather than budget brands, which matters for warranty fulfilment over a 25-year system life. Battery warranties vary by product to Tesla Powerwall 3 carries a 10-year warranty, Fox Energy and SolarEdge carry similar terms.
Yes. We retrofit battery storage to existing solar systems across Devon. The most common approach is AC coupling to adding a battery with its own inverter to the AC side of the existing installation. This works with any existing solar inverter and does not require replacing your current setup. The most cost-efficient time to add a battery is at the same time as the solar panels, but retrofitting later works well and carries the same 0% VAT benefit.
