Hoymiles 800W kits, how they work and what is legal
Since 27 August 2026 you can legally plug a solar panel into an ordinary 13A socket in Great Britain and run your house on it during daylight. Our Hoymiles 800W kits use the whole legal limit: two JA Solar 465W panels on one 800VA microinverter, from £418.95 inc VAT, held in stock in Coventry.
- 800VALegal ceiling, and the Hoymiles rating
- 930WOf JA Solar panels in every 800W kit
- 28 daysTo file a free G98 notice
- £110Government saving estimate, a year
How plug-in solar panels work
In short: the panels make DC electricity, a microinverter turns it into 230V AC in step with the mains, and its lead plugs into an ordinary wall socket. Whatever is running in your home uses the solar power first, so you draw less from the grid and your meter turns more slowly.
- The panels. Daylight on the cells produces direct current, at around 30 to 40 volts per panel. Bright sun gives the most, but an overcast British sky still gives something.
- The microinverter. A sealed box fixed near the panels converts that current into 230V, 50Hz alternating current matched to the mains. On our kits it is a Hoymiles 800VA unit, the part the law is written about and the part that carries the certification.
- The plug. The Hoymiles lead, 5m long with a UK 3-pin plug, goes into a wall socket. The power enters your home's wiring and feeds whatever is switched on at that moment, the fridge, the router, the washing machine, before a single unit is drawn from the grid.
- The cut-out. The inverter only produces power while it can sense a healthy grid. Pull the plug or lose the mains and it stops exporting at once, and it only restarts when the supply is back to normal.
Nothing is stored and nothing is sold. If the panels make more than the house is using, the surplus flows out to the grid unpaid. That is why plug-in solar suits homes where someone is in during the day, and why when you use electricity matters more than which kit you buy.
What you are allowed to plug in
One rule decides everything: the microinverter must not put more than 800VA into your home. That is the box between the panels and the socket, and it is the only part with a legal limit on it. Both Hoymiles units are rated at exactly 800VA.
| Combination | Into your socket | Allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Two 465W panels on a Hoymiles 800VA microinverter | 800VA | Yes |
| One 465W panel on a 600W VMI600 | 620VA | Yes |
| Any panels on a 1000W microinverter | 1000VA | No |
| Two 800W kits in two sockets | 1600VA | No |
930W of panels on an 800VA inverter is allowed
Two 465W panels add up to 930W, and people expect that to break the rule. It does not, because the inverter is a valve. The Hoymiles cannot pass more than 800VA whatever the panels do on a bright afternoon.
This is not a loophole, it is how solar is normally specified. Panels are rated in laboratory light that Britain almost never provides. Put generous panels on a modest inverter and the system reaches its full 800VA earlier in the day, holds it later, and does better under cloud. You give up a sliver of peak output in July and gain across the other eleven months.
Ask any seller for the ENA reference. Compliant microinverters are type tested and listed with the Energy Networks Association, and you need the reference to register. The Hoymiles HF-800-WB is listed as HOYMZ/18074/V1/A3, our Hoymiles 800W kits carry VOLTD/21572/V1/A2, and the Voltacon VMI600 is ZHEJI/15702/V1/A1. If a seller cannot name one for the exact model, you may not be able to register what you have bought.
Which Hoymiles kit to buy
Both kits pair two JA Solar 465W all-black panels with an 800VA Hoymiles microinverter that has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in and a 5m lead with a UK plug. The difference is how the inverter handles the two panels.
| Your space | Best fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Garden, shed roof or flat roof, both panels facing the same way | Hoymiles HF-800 kit | Best value. The panels run in series into one input, which is ideal when they get the same light |
| Panels at different angles, or shade on one for part of the day | Hoymiles HMS-800 kit | Dual MPPT. Each panel is tracked on its own input, so a shaded panel does not drag the other down |
| A balcony railing with room for one panel | 465W single-panel kit | One 22kg panel and a 620VA inverter, the cheapest way in |
| You already own suitable panels | Hoymiles inverter on its own | HF-800-WB for panels in series, HMS-800-2WB for one panel per input |
800W Kit, Hoymiles HF-800-WB
£418.95£349.13 exc VAT
Two JA Solar 465W panels in series into the HF-800-WB, about 81V against its 100V limit. 97% peak efficiency, IP67, and a 12 year Hoymiles inverter warranty.
View the HF-800 kit800W Kit, Hoymiles HMS-800-2WB
£441.00£367.50 exc VAT
Two JA Solar 465W panels, each on its own MPPT input of the HiFlow Pro HMS-800-2WB. The one to choose when the panels face different ways or shade moves across them.
View the HMS-800 kit465W Plug & Play Kit
£241.50£201.25 exc VAT
One JA Solar 465W panel, a 600W Voltacon microinverter rated 620VA, Wi-Fi monitoring and a 5m UK plug lead. 1762 x 1134mm and 22kg, which a balcony railing will take.
View the 465W kitHoymiles 800VA inverters
from £124.95HF-800-WB £124.95, HMS-800-2WB £145.95
For panels you already have. Both include the 5m lead with a UK plug and connect straight to the S-Miles app over Wi-Fi, with no separate gateway.
View the HF-800-WB View the HMS-800-2WBHoymiles HF-800-WB or HMS-800-2WB?
| HF-800-WB | HMS-800-2WB | |
|---|---|---|
| Rated output | 800VA | 800VA |
| MPPT inputs | 1, two panels in series | 2, one panel each |
| Maximum DC input | 100V, 16A | 65V and 14A per input |
| Peak efficiency | 97% | 96.7% |
| Monitoring | Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, S-Miles app | Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, S-Miles app |
| Enclosure and weight | IP67, 2.1kg | IP67, 3.2kg |
| Price, inverter only | £124.95 | £145.95 |
Mounting the panels somewhere other than a frame? The adjustable 15 to 30 degree balcony and fence mount is from £35.70 per panel.
What plug-in solar costs, and what it saves
A complete Hoymiles 800W kit costs £418.95 or £441.00 inc VAT, and the single-panel kit £241.50. There is nothing else to pay: no installer, no survey, no scaffolding and no fee for the G98 notice.
The government's estimate is a saving of up to £110 a year, up to 20% of a household's electricity. At that figure the HF-800 kit pays for itself in a little under four years. Treat it as the best case, because it assumes the power is used as it is made.
Hoymiles HF-800 kit at the government's best case: paid back in a little under four years.
A plug-in system offsets what you are drawing at that moment. There is no battery and no export payment, so anything generated while the house is empty is simply gone. If somebody is home during the day you will get close to the estimate. If the house is empty from eight until six you will mostly cover the fridge, the router and the standby load.
800W handles background draw, a laptop, a TV, a slow cooker. It will not run an electric shower and it will not charge a car. Shifting the washing machine to midday is worth more than agonising over the mounting angle.
Do not put a 1000W or 2000W microinverter in a socket. They are good units for a wired installation, but they sit outside the plug-in category and need a G99 application, which is a real approval process. Our 930W balcony kit with a 1000W inverter is sold on exactly that basis.
The paperwork, in one paragraph
Tell your Distribution Network Operator within 28 days of plugging in, under a standard called G98. It is free, it is a notification rather than an application, and a compliant device cannot be refused. Your DNO is the company that owns the cables in your street, which is not the same as your electricity supplier. If you rent or hold a lease you will usually need the landlord or freeholder to agree first, and listed buildings and conservation areas carry extra restrictions.
- Plug it inOnce it is mounted
- Tell your DNOWithin 28 days, free
- DoneA one-off notice, nothing to renew
The full detail on all of that, including a checklist for buying, is in our guide: plug-in solar rules in the UK, explained properly.
Questions we get asked
How much do plug-in solar panels cost?
Our Hoymiles 800W kits are £418.95 with the HF-800-WB and £441.00 with the dual MPPT HMS-800-2WB, both inc VAT with two JA Solar 465W panels. A single-panel kit is £241.50. If you already own panels, the Hoymiles inverters alone are £124.95 and £145.95.
Which Hoymiles microinverter should I choose?
Both are 800VA with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and the S-Miles app. The HF-800-WB has one input and runs two panels in series, which is ideal when both get the same light, and it is the cheaper of the two. The HMS-800-2WB has two independent MPPT inputs, so each panel is tracked on its own, which is better when the panels face different ways or one is shaded.
How many plug-in solar panels can I have?
As many as one microinverter takes, provided its output stays within 800VA. In practice that means one or two panels, which is why our Hoymiles kits run two panels on one 800VA inverter. Two separate kits in two sockets would add up to 1600VA, which is over the limit.
Does the 800W limit mean I can only have 800W of panels?
No. It limits the microinverter's AC output. Our kits put 930W of panels behind an 800VA Hoymiles inverter, which is compliant and generates more across a British year than 800W of panels would.
Is this legal everywhere in the UK?
Great Britain, yes, from 27 August 2026. Northern Ireland sits under a separate framework, so check locally before ordering.
Are plug-in solar panels safe?
Yes, when the microinverter is compliant. It is type tested to stop exporting the moment it loses the grid, and its output is capped at the rating on its label. Use a wall socket in good condition rather than an extension lead, and if your wiring is old or has no RCD protection, have an electrician look at it first.
Do I need a separate gateway to monitor it?
No. Both Hoymiles inverters have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in and connect to the S-Miles app on your phone, with no separate DTU gateway.
Can I add a battery?
Not to these kits. They have no battery connection, so what they make is used as it is made. If storing daytime solar for the evening matters more to you, that is a battery system, usually a wired installation with a hybrid inverter.
Do I need an MCS installer?
No. MCS matters for installations claiming export payments. A plug-in kit earns no export payment and needs no MCS installer, which is the entire point of the category.
Can I run it through an extension lead?
No. Use a dedicated wall socket. Trailing leads and multi-way adaptors are not designed to have generation pushed back through them.
Will it do anything in a power cut?
No. Grid-tied microinverters shut down when the grid goes down, deliberately, so they cannot make a dead cable live while someone is working on it.
Which way should it face?
South gives the most total energy. East or west spreads generation into the morning and evening, which often matches when people are actually at home using it. If you split the panels between two directions, choose the dual MPPT HMS-800 kit.
Saving and consumption figures are the UK government's published estimates from the announcement of 26 August 2026. Specifications and ENA references are taken from the manufacturers' data on each product page. Real output depends on orientation, shading, weather and how much electricity you use in daylight. Check the current rules and your own permissions before buying. This is general information, not electrical or legal advice.
