Andover is the largest town in Test Valley and, for a place with Saxon roots and a Georgian High Street, it wears a surprisingly modern face. Much of that comes from the 1960s, when Andover was designated an expanded town to take London overspill and doubled in size within a generation. Add the estates built since — Picket Twenty and Augusta Park among the newest — and you get a town whose roofs span three centuries. DES Renewable Energy installs across the whole of SP10 and SP11, from the terraces near the Anton to the downland villages out towards Hurstbourne Tarrant, working from our base in Wimborne.
Why the north Hampshire downs suit solar
Andover sits in a shallow bowl on the chalk of the North Wessex Downs, and that setting does a system more good than people expect. The downland is open rather than wooded, so mature-tree shading — the single most common reason a roof underperforms — is far less of an issue here than in the Test valley proper further south. Hampshire also picks up a good share of southern England’s sunshine hours, and panels generate from daylight rather than direct sun, so output continues through flat grey days as well as bright ones. What actually decides your generation figure is roof orientation, pitch and shading. Those get measured properly at survey, not estimated from an aerial photograph.
Andover roofs, and what each one means
Four kinds of property come up repeatedly in and around the town, and each changes the design a little.
- Expansion-era estates at Charlton, Cricketers and the roads off Weyhill Road. Simple pitched roofs, concrete interlocking tiles, often with an unbroken south or west slope and a garage that will take a few more panels. These are among the most straightforward installs we do.
- Town-centre and conservation-area properties near the High Street and the Guildhall. Placement matters here, and occasionally consent does too. We will tell you honestly at survey stage whether an array can be positioned discreetly enough to be worth pursuing.
- Newer developments at Picket Twenty, Augusta Park and Saxon Fields. Some already carry a token builder-fitted array sized to satisfy building regulations rather than your bills. Adding capacity, or adding storage to what is already there, is one of the most common jobs we are called out for.
- Village and downland homes around Abbotts Ann, Upper and Goodworth Clatford, Amport, Monxton, Penton Mewsey, Thruxton and Weyhill. Larger plots, barns and outbuildings, and frequently oil or LPG heating — which raises electricity demand and makes generating your own considerably more valuable.
What we install
- Solar PV installation — a system designed around your roof and your actual consumption, with a generation estimate you can hold us to.
- Battery storage — holds the midday surplus until the evening, and can charge overnight on an off-peak tariff. Worth most in households that are empty between nine and five.
- EV charger installation — Andover commutes hard, to Basingstoke, Winchester and along the A303. A home charger drawing on your own panels changes the running cost of that journey.
- Servicing, maintenance and repairs — inverter faults, performance checks, and health-checks on systems left behind by installers who have since gone quiet.
What solar actually saves you
Every unit you generate and use yourself is a unit you do not buy, so the effect shows up on your next bill rather than in a decade’s time. Without storage, a typical family home uses somewhere between a third and a half of what it generates; with a battery that share climbs steeply, because the surplus is still there when everyone gets home. Whatever you don’t use is exported and paid for under the Smart Export Guarantee, and because DES is MCS-certified your installation is eligible to register for SEG payments from day one. We put property-specific figures in every quote — your roof, your usage, your numbers, not a national average.
Accredited, and every team our own
DES Renewable Energy is MCS-certified, NAPIT-registered and a member of RECC, the consumer code governing how renewable installers quote, contract and stand behind their warranties. Our surveyors, electricians and roofers are directly employed rather than subcontracted, so the people who design your system are the ones accountable for it afterwards. We handle the DNO application and register the installation on your behalf. Andover is one of many towns we cover across the county — the solar panels in Hampshire hub lists the rest.
Get a free solar quote in Andover
Start with a free, no-obligation quote. Tell us about your property and roughly what you spend on electricity, and we will come back with a design, a generation estimate and a straight answer on payback. Request your free quote here, or call and talk it through with someone who has worked on roofs like yours.