Solar Panel Battery Storage
Adding a battery to your solar panel system is the single most effective way to increase your energy savings. Without a battery, a typical Manchester home self-consumes only 35-45% of the solar energy generated — the rest is exported to the grid at 4-15p/kWh. With a battery, self-consumption rises to 70-85%, meaning you use far more of the electricity you generate rather than buying it back from the grid at 24.5p/kWh.
Manchester Renewables is an approved Fox ESS partner and MCS-certified installer of tier-1 battery systems. Whether you are adding a battery to an existing solar system or installing solar and battery together as a new system, our team designs and commissions your storage solution for maximum performance. All batteries we install include smart monitoring, time-of-use tariff optimisation, and optional emergency backup power.
What Is Included?
Battery Sizing Consultation
We analyse your energy usage patterns to recommend the right battery capacity — typically 5-10kWh for residential homes, matched to your solar array size and evening consumption.
Hybrid Inverter or AC Coupling
For new installations, we use hybrid inverters that manage solar and battery in one unit. For retrofits to existing systems, we use AC-coupled batteries that integrate without changing your current inverter.
Smart Energy Management
Your battery is configured for intelligent charging and discharging — storing excess solar during the day and releasing it during peak evening hours when electricity is most expensive.
Time-of-Use Tariff Setup
We configure your battery to work with tariffs like Octopus Flux, Intelligent Go, or Agile — charging from the grid at off-peak rates (as low as 7p/kWh) and discharging during peak periods.
Optional Emergency Backup
Selected battery systems include an Emergency Power Supply (EPS) function, providing backup power to essential circuits during grid outages.
0% VAT on Battery Storage: Save £500-£1,000
Battery storage systems installed alongside or added to existing solar panels are zero-rated for VAT until March 2027. This applies to both new solar-plus-battery installations and retrofit battery additions. The saving is typically £500-£1,000 depending on battery capacity.
Why It Matters
- Increase solar self-consumption from 35-45% to 70-85%, dramatically reducing your grid electricity purchases
- A 5kWh battery can save an additional £250-£400 per year on top of solar savings alone
- Time-of-use tariff arbitrage lets you charge cheaply overnight and use stored energy during expensive peak hours
- Battery prices have fallen 40% since 2022, making solar-plus-storage payback periods shorter than ever
Cost Guidance
A 5.2kWh battery with hybrid inverter typically costs £2,800-£3,500 installed. A 9.5kWh system for higher-consumption homes costs £4,000-£5,500. Larger 13.5kWh systems range from £5,500-£7,000. Retrofitting a battery to an existing solar system using AC coupling adds approximately £500-£800 to the cost compared to installing alongside new solar panels. All prices include 0% VAT.