Before you buy a plug-in solar kit, there are a few things you should know that the product listings won't tell you. Not because manufacturers are hiding them — they're just not relevant to someone buying a camping power station, and most of this product category evolved from camping power stations.

The DNO notification question

Distribution Network Operators manage the electricity network in your area. G98 — the relevant distribution code for small generation — requires notification (not approval) for systems up to 3.68kW. Plug-in solar at 800W sits well within G98. What notification actually requires: you submit a simple online form to your DNO within 28 days of installation. No approval process, no site inspection, no cost.

Whether every plug-in solar buyer actually does this: no. Whether you should: technically yes, for full compliance. The one case where it matters practically is the Smart Export Guarantee — SEG requires MCS certification, which self-installed plug-in solar currently doesn't have. So DNO notification is real but largely academic for most buyers.

The export question

When your panels generate more than your home uses at that moment, the excess flows back to the grid through your meter. On a standard tariff, you don't get paid for it. This is why self-consumption rate matters so much. A household with someone home all day captures most of their generation. A household empty from 8am to 6pm might capture only 30–40% — the rest goes to the grid for free.

The solution: run high-draw appliances during the day, or add a home battery like the Anker Solarbank or Zendure SolarFlow to push self-consumption above 85%.

The installer question

BS 7671 Amendment 4 means sub-800W systems on standard sockets no longer require an electrician once the BSI product standard publishes in July 2026. Before that, the fully compliant route involves a registered electrician. Practically: many buyers self-install now. Legally: grey area pre-July. Physically: the safety case for a certified product on a standard socket is solid regardless.

The planning question

Planning permission is not required for plug-in solar in gardens in most UK situations. Permitted development rights cover domestic solar, and a freestanding ground-mount in a garden is treated like garden furniture, not a structure. Conservation areas and listed buildings are exceptions.