The biggest increase in average sunlight hours comes in April, according to the Met Office's figures.

Compared to March, which averages 4 hours, April has an average of 6 sunlight hours. This is the same as August and three times as many average sunlight hours as in January.

This is one of the possible explanations for installation rates increasing in time for Spring, as home-owners anticipate seeing a bigger return on their investment straight away.

With the sun finally starting to shine in the UK, its a good reminder of how beneficial harnessing the sun's rays can be - something those with solar panels already installed will no doubt be noticing.

Harnessing the Sun

For those who have looked into having solar panels installed, or most of the public that have heard about them being such a profitable investment, you'll have heard systems described as a 3kW system' or a '4kW system', but what does this mean and how does the glorious weather we've enjoyed impact your earnings and savings?

Well a 3kW system (often you'll see it written 3kWp - peak kilowatts), rather unsurprisingly, means that the system will generate a maximum of 3 kilowatts of solar power in direct sunlight. So over a typical day in April, with an average of 6 hours of direct sunlight the system can maximally produce 18kW of power each day - or if you like, sufficient to boil the kettle for around 700 cups of tea.

That's enough tea to turn an Englishman crazy!

The term 'average hours of direct sunlight' is used because unless you live on the equator the strength of the sun will be less than 'direct'. However, with the longer hours of daylight starting in April, the average amount of direct-strength sunlight will increase greatly over the coming months.

This means that the more sun there is, the more kilowatts your panels produce, and the more you are rewarded by the feed-in-tariff for doing so (not to mention. So installing in preparation for the months of longer and stronger sunlight ensures you begin earning and saving at the peak time of year for solar installations.

If Solar Panels have caught your eye like they've caught mine you can get your FREE QUOTE on solar panel prices here.