Solar is complicated. Until it isn’t. Here’s what you actually need to know.
The decision tree
Adrian Hiel, has a simple decision tree for deciding whether solar panels are right for you. It goes like this:
- Do you have a roof?
- If yes: get solar panels.
That’s the whole tree. Solar is the cheapest form of energy ever produced, and right now, with prices where they are and returns what they are, it’s one of the best investments you can make in your home.
What Adrian paid and what you should expect to pay in Brussels
Adrian got his panels installed in early 2026. He paid just under €1 per watt. He got five quotes, and they all came in between 97 cents and €1.10 per watt, a pretty tight range that tells you the market is mature and competitive.
To put that in concrete terms: 10 panels at 450 watts each should cost you just under €4,500 for the full installation.
One thing worth knowing: as of April 2026, China updated its export tariffs on solar panels, which pushed prices up slightly. A fair benchmark to work with now in Belgium is around €1.10 per watt when you go out for quotes.
The return on investment and the thing most people get wrong
Adrian expects his panels to pay back in around four years. That’s a return of anywhere between 10 and 30%, depending on one key variable: how much of the electricity you produce you actually consume yourself.
This is the point Adrian is most insistent about. The money is not in what you sell back to the grid. Yes, you’ll get something for that, but the real value is in replacing electricity you would otherwise be buying. Every kilowatt hour your panels produce that goes straight into your kettle, your washing machine, or eventually your heat pump or EV, is a kilowatt hour you didn’t pay your energy supplier for. That’s where the return comes from.
It’s also why the conventional advice: get as many panels as match your current annual consumption is outdated. Adrian’s view: get as many as you possibly can or as you roof allows. You will almost certainly end up with a heat pump or an electric car at some point, and your electricity needs will grow. While the installers are on your roof, maximise what they can do.
Who should install them?
The market for solar installation is mature. There isn’t a huge difference between going with a big energy company versus a local electrician, Adrian has done both before. His advice: get your three quotes, then go with whoever you feel most comfortable with. That last part matters more than it sounds. You want someone responsive, someone who explains things clearly, and someone you trust to handle the paperwork.
On paperwork:if you live in the Brussels region, make sure your installer signs you up for the certificat vert (green certificate). This is a compensation mechanism, a kind of green voucher you can sell, that guarantees your payback within seven years, though in practice you can do it faster. A good installer should handle the application process for this automatically. If they don’t mention it, you bring it up.
What happens after you sign the contract?
It can all go faster than you’d expect. Here’s the rough timeline:
- 2–4 weeks to installation (that’s what most contractors quoted in early 2026 – with the current fossil fuel crisis, more demand might mean more delay)
- Half a day to 3 days for the actual installation, depending on the size of the job
- 2 weeks after installation, an inspector visits to check your electrical box – a 30-minute visit to make sure everything is in order and you and your family are safe, nothing to worry about
- A few weeks after that, you get your smart meter installed – your installer should handle this application too
Once the smart meter is in, a whole world of possibilities opens up. You can start tracking your production in real time, optimising when you run appliances, and, Adrian warns you about this compulsively checking the app to see how much you’re generating.
Have a question? Drop it in the comments on LinkedIn or YouTube, or get in touch with the Electrification Alliance directly. As Adrian puts it: we’ve got you covered.