I’ve written about hybrid solar and off grid solar systems before, but Tesla’s latest announcement about its new PowerWall battery is a real game changer for solar battery storage affordability – Morgan Stanley has a report that attests to this in greater detail. For those of you that don’t feel like slogging through an in-depth report, I’ve summarised the important distinctions between Hybrid and Off-Grid solar systems below. Enjoy!
So AGL have thrown their hat into the solar battery storage ring with the AUO PowerLegato manufactured by Taiwanese Solar and Electronic conglomerate, AU Optronics.
So how do they compare on specs?
What might be the cheapest way to install a Tesla Powerwall + solar?
Note: The Tesla Powerwall 1 was released after this post and required a separate Battery Inverter and the existing solar inverter. The Powerwall 1 has since been superseded by the Powerwall 2, which has an integrated Battery Inverter – and AC couples to a solar inverter.
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[Note: This blog post is an educated guess on how the Tesla Powerwall might work based on stuff Elon Musk has publicly said and the press section of their website. So bear that in mind if making any decisions based on this post. Tesla have released sketchy and often contradictory technical details about the Powerwall, so it is impossible to be sure how the thing will work or integrate into an existing system. I’ve tried asking Tesla US and Tesla Australia for clarification, but with no luck.]
Since Tesla announced their low cost home battery, many solar installers have been looking for the cheapest way to integrate one into your home’s electrical system.
This has led to the emergence of a whole new category of residential solar system, that had never really been considered here in Australia before the Tesla announcement – the not-very-catchy “Hybrid Solar Without Backup” system.
This is a system which, to save thousands of dollars on the install, removes the ability for the batteries to power your home if the grid goes down. The batteries are only used to store solar energy. They cannot be used in an outage. [Read more…]
Will the Tesla Battery lead to a stampede of people leaving the grid? Photo: Tesla
[Update: Since I wrote this post (on the day the Powerwall was announced) Tesla have added some technical details that open up the possibility of installing the Powerwall for a much lower price than this blog post estimates. But – and it’s a big but – the cheaper installation will not allow you to go off grid. More details on the alternative install option here]
So Tesla has just announced a 10kWh home battery pack that costs US$3,500 (AUD$4,500) . The Tesla PowerWall will mount unobtrusively on the wall of your home and store your solar energy, so you can use it at night or when the grid goes down.
Lots of twitterers are proclaiming that Renewable Energy utopia has arrived. You’d be forgiven from thinking that, thanks to Tesla founder Elon Musk, all we have to do to divorce the grid is shell out three and a half grand.
Look – I don’t want to piss on anyone’s parade. This announcement is massive in lots of ways which I’ll get to soon. But you won’t be able to go off grid for that kind of money (yet).
Here’s what Aussie homeowners should know about the Telsa Powerwall [Read more…]
A good inverter is essential in the Australian sun.
Picking great inverters; Tier 1, 2 or 3?
Savvy solar customers are quickly realising that there is a very real difference between the quality of products and services you can find in the solar industry.
As a general rule, the old adage “you get what you pay for” generally holds true but the plethora of offers and solar companies can make selection tricky. Here at SolarQuotes I’ve helped make this choice a little easier by developing its own ranking system for installation companies.
But how do you choose a great inverter? [Read more…]
Artists impression of the proposed well
1 April 2015: Tony Abbott announced today that he has accepted the ‘very kind’ gift of a free Coal Seam Gas Well to be installed on the front lawn of Kirribilli House.
The offer from the ‘Concerned Oil, Diesel & Gas Executives Rejecting Solar” (CODGERS) to come and frack every last molecule of gas from beneath his official Sydney residence was confirmed by the PM at a press conference this morning:
“Yes – I can confirm that I have accepted this very kind offer from the CODGERS. I look forward to watching the fracking commence and coming home every night to that sweet, sweet smell of fugitive methane”
This comes just 2 weeks after Abbott rejected the offer of free solar panels + installation from a group of concerned Christians citing security concerns and cleaning costs (of $4 per panel per year).
When asked what he will do with all the fracked gas that the well will generate the PM responded:
“Great Question! It will be used to incinerate all the reams of paperwork lying around the place that aren’t needed any more. Like the RET & Carbon Tax legislation, the Kyoto Protocol and 80% of last year’s budget papers. I also want to get rid of the few remaining copies of the UN Convention on Human Rights that Scott Morrison couldn’t fit in the skip”.
I have a 6kW (24 panel) solar system on my roof.
My last quarterly electricity bill is here. The good news is that it was for only $33.60.
My latest electricity bill. Notice how the GST is way more than 10%
The interesting thing is the breakdown of the $33.60. If you look at the bottom of the bill, I paid $12.68 in electricity charges but a whopping $20.92 in GST (highlighted in blue on the bill).
You don’t have to be great at maths to know that 10% of $12.68 is $1.27 not $20.92 [Read more…]
The Fairfax article published on 22 Feb 2015
The Fairfax papers’ coverage of the solar industry is usually spot on. But I think the latest article by Political Reporter Heath Aston is way off mark.
Greg Hunt must have salivated all over his iPad as he read the article yesterday morning. I can see him dribbling with delight at the rampant tales of rorted rebates and shonky solar systems. And surprise, surprise: within a few hours of the article going live, Hunt announced:
“The poor installation of solar PV or installation of substandard solar PV has the potential to lead to fires with risks to property and human life. I’m sure you would agree that it is absolutely imperative that all panels installed must be of high quality and pose absolutely no threat to safety.”
I would like to ask Hunt how he thinks that it is possible to mandate that a piece of electrical equipment must “pose absolutely no threat to safety”. [Read more…]
Update: This post was written in 2015. It is still worth a read to understand how solar affects your bill – but if you want to browse all my recent bills you can do so here.
I got my quarterly electricity bill last week. It was $33. I was so happy that I tweeted AGL.
AGL’s reply is priceless:
@Solar_Quotes Hi Finn, sorry to hear about this issue. Can we help? Pls call 131 245 (we’re open 24/7) & we’ll investigate ASAP. ~Gero
— AGL Energy (@aglenergy) January 19, 2015
I’m guessing AGL don’t get a lot of compliments on Twitter! I also posted a scan of my bill on SolarQuotes’ Facebook page:
[Read more…]
Rules for installing solar in QLD change on March 1
****UPDATE****
On 12th Feb 2015 Ergon and Energex announced that they are extending this deadline from 1 March out to 30 September 2015.
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The Queensland electricity networks (hello Ergon and Energex!) are a fussy bunch. At the time of writing (Jan 2015) if you want to install a standard grid connect solar system bigger than 5kW, you need to jump through all sorts of technical hoops. And then the networks may also insist that you install a box of electronics that stops any of your excess energy being exported. That’s right you have to waste any excess clean energy instead of letting your neighbours use it! [Read more…]
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