I've been thinking about the sun, the weather didn't do "dry January" and February is a full on pub crawl.

Whatever the weather's doing, solar panels generate electricity, it may be smaller amounts on overcast days, but as the large grocer says, every little helps (when you use 12,000kWh per year).

This gives us a six-year return on investment at current prices, and we're saving £250 per month at least. Our monthly energy bill of almost £386 is a notable entry in the household budget.

Eliminating our electricity bill using the sun has long been on my tech wish list. Being off grid in a town seems difficult, but is doable.

Too many business owners get lifestyle inflation, which I've been guilty of too. There's nothing wrong with wanting a more comfortable life, but at what cost? As I age it makes sense to live a frugal lifestyle and save time to enjoy the stuff you love. Balancing income and lifestyle is challenging, so when I find a way to maximise time and money, I lean in.

Solar might be a retirement shortcut, here's my thinking. Debt recovery plans pay down the highest interest first, once cleared use the savings to pay down your next debt. Monthly payments compound and eat the debt quicker and this principle is core to my plan – if I save £250 a month on electricity bills, add this to mortgage direct debit and take several years off repayment. Then roll electricity bill and mortgage savings into pension payments.

This leveraging effect is better bang for buck than interest on capital, or current risks of locking in the pension and the economies of the G7 imploding.

Payback timeline is clear, even without any feed in tariff, or energy hikes, the path to financial freedom is paved with solar panels.

By Stuart Morrison